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Third Mamba bite

The man who was bitten by a green mamba on Tuesday was the third person to be bitten by a mamba in KwaZulu-Natal this month, according to Netcare911.

Thomas Ncube, 40, of Groutville, and three friends were going fishing when he was bitten by what is believed to be a green mamba at Tinley Manor on Tuesday morning.

“I was on my way to the beach and decided to take a shortcut using a narrow pathway through the grass. I didn’t see the snake at first, but then I felt a sharp pain and I saw the snake had bitten me on my knee,” Ncube told the Natal Mercury from his Stanger Hospital bed.
Ncube said his friends began screaming and ran off.

“The snake bit me again. I jumped and it let go, but moved forward and bit me again,” he said.

Ncube ran to a nearby road for help and stood there for a while before realising that nobody would stop. He walked to a nearby hostel but was unable to find help there either.

Ncube began frothing at the mouth, the men drove him to Shakaskraal Clinic. “The clinic didn’t have anti-venom to treat me, so the men took me a private doctor, who also did not have any.”

The doctor then called Netcare911, who stabilised him before transporting him to Stanger Hospital.

According to Netcare 911 spokesman Jeff Wicks, Ncube is the third snake bite victim they’ve treated this month.

Wicks said a Russian tourist who was jogging in Umdloti on the North Coast on March 5 was bitten twice on the leg by a green mamba.

It is thought that the snake had been driven over by a passing vehicle prior to the attack.

The other attack, which was by a black mamba, occurred on 12 March in Richmond near Pietermaritzburg.

Wicks points out that the farmworker involved was saved from serious injury by his overalls, which the snake’s fangs failed to penetrate. It is believed that he had inadvertently driven over the snake with his tractor.

Mike Perry a snake expert from African Reptiles & Venom says that a high level of snake activity in March and April is not unusual.

He attributes this to the warm weather and the fact that snakes such as mambas are looking for mates prior to going underground in winter.

He suggests that it is significant that in two of the incidents the snakes were driven over prior to biting their victims.

Snakes are not normally aggressive creatures and are not likely to attack if left alone, he emphasises. He, however, cautions that they should be stayed away from and never handled by anyone other than experts.

“Green mambas are particularly shy and I know of just one confirmed attack over the last 10 years,” Perry said.

“They are arboreal creatures which means that they live in trees and rarely come to ground and into contact with people.
If they do they will beat a hasty retreat. People would have interfered with these two green mambas in order for them to have bitten the two individuals involved.”

Perry advises people in the bush or veld to take steps to protect their lower legs from snakebites, as this is where just about all bites occur.

Thick long trousers such as jeans can help provide protection against many snakebites, stopping the fangs from penetrating or at least preventing a clean bite and injection of toxin.

Shaun Ryan, the General Manager at Netcare Umhlanga Hospital says that the Russian woman who was admitted in a critical condition to the hospital on March 5 was successfully treated with an anti-serum and has since been discharged.
According to Dr Anchen Laubscher, Netcare 911 principal medical officer, it is critical for doctors to treat any snakebite victim as soon as possible especially with a snake as toxic as a mamba.

Also of critical importance is that the victim be treated with the correct anti-serum. Usually doctors can gain an idea of what kind of snake it was from the symptoms, but in some cases the snake is also positively identified on scene, Laubscher said.

According to Netcare911, these are some things you can do when someone has been bitten by a snake:
# Get the patient to a medical facility as soon as possible.
# Keep the victim calm and quiet. Panic can help circulate the venom through the body more quickly.
# Immobilise the bitten area and keep it below the heart.
# Avoid administering any pain killing or other medication unless on the direction of a qualified medical practitioner.
# Do not allow the victim to eat or drink anything and especially not alcohol.
# Do not administer snakebite serum unless instructed to do so by a qualified medical practitioner.

Tortoise stolen from San Francisco museum

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A San Francisco museum is looking for help, tracking down its stolen tortoise.

The desert tortoise, nicknamed “Arthur,” was taken from the Randall Museum in the city’s Castro District, sometime last Wednesday afternoon.

The museum has taken out an ad on Craigslist, in hopes of getting the 50-year-old reptile back safely.

If you know who has Arthur, you are urged to return him to the museum — no questions asked.

Six-foot snake goes on the loose in Leicester

People have been warned to keep an eye on small pets after reports of a 6ft black snake at large in gardens.

Worried residents of Shetland Road, in Belgrave, Leicester, have also been advised to keep windows and doors closed as the reptile could try to get into homes in a bid to keep warm.

Some residents have sprinkled flour on their patios to track the path of the snake, which has left long tracks winding across lawns.

One has put up a scarecrow to try to keep the creature, thought to be a “harmless” Mexican Black Kingsnake, at bay.

Suveena Bali, 19, who lives in Shetland Road, saw the snake on Saturday, March 6, and reported it to the RSPCA.
“It was in my garden and I saw it slithering through the fence at the bottom,” she said.

“I ran upstairs to see if I could get a better look but by the time I got to the bedroom window, it was gone.

“I told the RSPCA and they told me to capture it and then ring them.

“I’m not going anywhere near it.”

Rahul Samplay, 30, also of Shetland Road, has been sprinkling flour to track the route of the snake after spotting it on Saturday. He also reported it to the RSPCA.

“I want to know if it’s coming up to the house,” he said.

“It’s quite scary to think that a 6ft snake is slithering around in your garden.

“The RSPCA told us to keep our doors and windows locked as well because it can climb.

“My little sister is terrified of going to the toilet now in case it comes up out of the U-bend.”

Dave Cook, owner of pet shop Scales and Tails, in Burleigh Avenue, Wigston, said from the description it might be a Mexican Black Kingsnake.

“They’re completely harmless, and if it is the Mexican Black then he’s an escaped pet,” he said. “The number-one name for snakes is Houdini – they’ll get out of anywhere.”

An RSPCA spokesman said the charity did not have the manpower to search for the reptile, but would take it away if it was confined.

He warned residents to “keep an eye” on any small pets, such as kittens and rabbits, which could be targeted by the hungry snake.

Andy Moore, manager of Pets at Twycross Zoo, advised people not to handle the snake because they can carry salmonella.

The RSPCA’s emergency hotline can be reached by calling 0300 1234 999.

Exotic-animal law to see fines of up to $250,000, two years in prison for non-permitted pets

The owners of hundreds of exotic pets face heavy fines, jail, and the seizure and destruction of their animals when a new law governing non-native animals from frogs and snakes to tigers comes into effect April 1.

People who already owned any of the 1,200 animals listed under the Controlled Alien Species Regulation of the Wildlife Act before March 16, 2009, can obtain a free permit from the provincial government provided they can adequately house and care for the animal.

But keeping a cheetah, rhino, a black crested gibbon or any of the assorted frog, cat and reptile species on the government’s list without a permit could cost you a fine of up to $100,000 and one year in prison. And that’s for a first-time offender. Breeding or releasing such an animal into the wild could run you up to $250,000 and two years in prison.

Environment Ministry staff have received only a few dozen applications for possession permits and have not issued a single permit so far, according to Environment Minister Barry Penner. Alberta has issued 1,200 permits under similar regulations and ministry staff in B.C. believe there are at least as many animals on this province’s alien species list resident in B.C.

“Come April 1, if you have one of these alien species you could get a visit from a conservation officer or the police,” said Penner.

Pet owners who cannot get the required permit will have little option but to have their animals put down or face stiff penalties, according to reptile rescuer Mike Hopcraft.

The legislation was drafted after Tania Dumstrey-Soos was mauled by a Siberian tiger in 100 Mile House in 2007. Dumstrey-Soos died while two of her children looked on and family members attempted to revive her. The animal was one of three tigers being housed at a private zoo.

“When it became popular or cool for some people to keep dangerous or poisonous animals we felt that for public safety we needed to amend the Wildlife Act to give us the authority to control that,” said Penner. The regulation is effectively a prohibition on breeding listed species and a ban on any further imports of those creatures, Penner said.

Hopcraft expects that a large number of animals will have to be put down once the law comes into full effect. Hopcraft, known as The Reptile Guy, keeps about 80 reptiles, about 20 of which are on the alien species list. He is already fielding inquiries from owners of exotic pets who have been refused permits.

Hopcraft says the act only allows him 90 days to find a home for any exotic pet he rescues after April 1. If he fails, the animal must be euthanized, he said. “That’s an animal that has never hurt anyone that has to be put down.”

A Vancouver homeowner who has owned a 3.2-metre (10.5-foot) albino Burmese python for years was refused a permit, but not because he can’t keep it properly. He was refused because the City of Vancouver prohibits large pythons and he could not obtain an exemption even though he had owned the snake before the city’s bylaw was passed, said Hopcraft. “Now that they know that he has this snake in Vancouver, he has to get rid of it,” said Hopcraft, who is making arrangements to take the snake, having just found a home for a similar reptile after four months of searching.

Rather than face fines, some people may simply release their pets into the wild if they cannot obtain permits, he said. Abbotsford-area newspapers have received reports that a shed skin from a 1.8-metre (six-foot) long python was found in a local park.

The Vancouver SPCA took in 25 unwanted exotic pets during a recent 12-month period.

Hopcraft finances his animal rescue work by taking his reptiles to schools and public events and doing educational presentations. “This law affects me probably more than anybody in this province,” said Hopcraft, 27. The Abbotsford resident is now seeking accreditation from the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums and a commercial site in order to keep his menagerie. The move will cost “tens of thousands of dollars.”

“I’ve been doing this out of my home for years, but now I am faced with finding another space so that I can continue my work. I have to become a zoo or I can’t do my rescue work.”

He is in negotiations to rent a property in Chilliwack to house his animals and headquarter his rescue operation.

Hopcraft is hosting a fundraiser birthday party for Mac the ring-tailed lemur at his home this Sunday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 32129 Timms Ave., Abbotsford. He will have lots of reptiles, insects and exotic mammals to meet and touch. Admission by donation.

COMMENTS below
anonymous

7:14 AM on March 16, 2010