[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Hey Pramod, what is the Mallu name for "keelback" ? I do a lot of swimming in the river near my home at Kerala and occasionally take my 2-year old son along - he loves water. And occasionally I have seen snakes in the river, swimming away. Would love to know more about this non-venomous danger lurking in the water.

They bite real bad, but are tottaly non venomous so no issues, there is a mallu myth that you are supposed to skip a meal if you are bitten. i hope thas not that bad afterall :-)

Originally Posted by Rajachu

SB,
i think its "neerkoli"?let pramod confirm.Anyways very interesting thered

Raj

Correct. its neekoli or pollavan depends on which side of kerala the snake is from .

Pramod

[supremeBaleno]

Like I expected, it is the pollavan. Neerkoli is not used much in our area. Thanks, guys.

[s@tan2s@int]

Excuse for going off the topic here. Wanted to share few pics of a baby cobra that was caught in our office campus in Hitech city yesterday. There were two snakes spotted in the garden area, one managed to escape while the other one was not all that lucky.

[saleem_k]

Originally Posted by s@tan2s@int

Excuse for going off the topic here. Wanted to share few pics of a baby cobra that was caught in our office campus in Hitech city yesterday. There were two snakes spotted in the garden area, one managed to escape while the other one was not all that lucky.

Wow! where in the Hitech city buddy? I too work in Hitech City in Cyber Pearl building. I though the development in the areas around must have killed lot of snakes and other reptiles/insects found in the wild.

The best thing would have been to relocate the snakes instead of killing them.

[s@tan2s@int]

Originally Posted by saleem_k

Wow! where in the Hitech city buddy? I too work in Hitech City in Cyber Pearl building. I though the development in the areas around must have killed lot of snakes and other reptiles/insects found in the wild.

The best thing would have been to relocate the snakes instead of killing them.

My office is right behind Cyber gateway and opp Delloitte campus.

I dont think the snake was killed, professional snake catchers were called in, who caught the snake and later released it in some forest area

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by s@tan2s@int

My office is right behind Cyber gateway and opp Delloitte campus.

I dont think the snake was killed, professional snake catchers were called in, who caught the snake and later released it in some forest area

Were these people from FSS?

Pramod

[supremeBaleno]

After a great X'mas lunch, was walking in the backyard and suddenly I feel/sense something and stop. Look to my right and there is a flash of yellow - a snake draped between the trunks of 2 trees.


Half of it is on the other side, away from my view. To my eyes, it looks like a Chera (rat-snake). I move closer to be able to take a closer snap, but it slides to the other side and glides quickly to the fields.

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

After a great X'mas lunch, was walking in the backyard and suddenly I feel/sense something and stop. Look to my right and there is a flash of yellow - a snake draped between the trunks of 2 trees.
Attachment 251215

Half of it is on the other side, away from my view. To my eyes, it looks like a Chera (rat-snake). I move closer to be able to take a closer snap, but it slides to the other side and glides quickly to the fields.

Nice specimen, It is a rat snake. I had a gala weekend, Rescued a cobra from a well. Caught a checkered keelback to teach people handling. My dog learned swiming . I will upload some pics once my internet is up at home.

Pramod

[indianchiefrsd]

Well, I am no expert but when in the wilderness there are a few codes one must always observe.

1. Always be aware of your surroundings, always make a quick scan for anything out of place when you come back to your tent or room or vehicle after leaving it out in the open for long.
2. Dont be messy, leaving clothes lying around can always result in nasty surprises inside when left unattended too.
3. Always check your shoes before wearing them, most scorpion bites come from these.

There are only 4 poisonous snakes ( an by these I mean the ones that can get you killed) in the India, they are

1. The common cobra, the king and spitting cobra may be around but are rare. The common cobra is also called the spotted or hooded cobra
2. The Saw Scaled viper, extremely small and extremely toxic, its bites are heamotoxic, which means they attack the tissue and blood cells, more painful a bite than the cobra which is neurotoxic which means it attacks the nervous system.
3. The Russels Viper - Short and stout, looks very terrifying and is the most aggressive of all the venomous snakes in India. Results in the most attacks. The saw scale results in the most fatalities.
4. The common Krait - Usually in coastal areas - very shy not the kind to get in your way or an ambush predator. It looks the cutest and most harmless of the lot but make no mistake that it is lethal.

These are the ones you need to use caution while dealing with, the others are venomous but cant really harm you in anyway but then again why get bitten in the first place.

Snakes are probably the most beautiful, delicate and misunderstood creatures on the planet. If you do encounter one just remember if the snake could speak it would be screaming and scared at the very sight of you. Give it room and motivation and it'll leave on its own accord. Just be careful while opening the bonnet or dickey and check the wheel arches every time you move around.

Hope it helps, happy travelling. You also get snake repellents, These basically use certain smells to ward of snakes and other insects from your belongings. Where to obtain them is something I have no clue on.

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

Well, I am no expert but when in the wilderness there are a few codes one must always observe.

1. Always be aware of your surroundings, always make a quick scan for anything out of place when you come back to your tent or room or vehicle after leaving it out in the open for long.
2. Dont be messy, leaving clothes lying around can always result in nasty surprises inside when left unattended too.
3. Always check your shoes before wearing them, most scorpion bites come from these.

.

Correct

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

There are only 4 poisonous snakes ( an by these I mean the ones that can get you killed) in the India, they are

1. The common cobra, the king and spitting cobra may be around but are rare. The common cobra is also called the spotted or hooded cobra
2. The Saw Scaled viper, extremely small and extremely toxic, its bites are heamotoxic, which means they attack the tissue and blood cells, more painful a bite than the cobra which is neurotoxic which means it attacks the nervous system.
3. The Russels Viper - Short and stout, looks very terrifying and is the most aggressive of all the venomous snakes in India. Results in the most attacks. The saw scale results in the most fatalities.
4. The common Krait - Usually in coastal areas - very shy not the kind to get in your way or an ambush predator. It looks the cutest and most harmless of the lot but make no mistake that it is lethal.

.

Wrong, These are the big for not the only 4, The spitting cobras a re not found in india, and the king is not a common cobra . This is the largest venomous snake on the planet with huge quantity of toxic neurotoxin, They are rather shy and there are just 4 reported deaths in the span of 30 years in india, There is no inhouse antivenin available for it, the one available is imported from thiland however its never been tested on an indian veriety. The other snakes are the branded Krait, this is actually a distant relative of king cobra not like every one else thinks a spectacle cobra is.

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

These are the ones you need to use caution while dealing with, the others are venomous but cant really harm you in anyway but then again why get bitten in the first place.
.

Boss no offences, but all pit vipers are extreamly dangerous, you have just named the russel's viper and the saw scaled viper, the Bamboo pit viper, The malabar pit viper and the hump nosed viper are more dangerous than the russel's viper and the saw scaled viper, the only reason why the later are more infamous is they are found often near human settlements and the formar are found in deep and dense forests.

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

Snakes are probably the most beautiful, delicate and misunderstood creatures on the planet. If you do encounter one just remember if the snake could speak it would be screaming and scared at the very sight of you.
.

True, People do not understand that we are not the only species who live in this plannet. The cobra that i rescued was found in a well near the paddy field. I used a small loop at the end of the stick to fish it out, people wanted to kill it the moment it was out but we let it go into the paddy fields. People were furious initially, when i told them that if all snakes disappear for your fields you will not have any crops some of them got passified.

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

Give it room and motivation and it'll leave on its own accord. Just be careful while opening the bonnet or dickey and check the wheel arches every time you move around.
.

Any animal attacks when cornered, Try cornering a harmless looking common house cat and you will understand what i mean. The only reason why a snake is killed is because people dont understand their role in the eco system.

Originally Posted by indianchiefrsd

Hope it helps, happy travelling. You also get snake repellents, These basically use certain smells to ward of snakes and other insects from your belongings. Where to obtain them is something I have no clue on.

There are many misconceptions about these creatures, thanks to hindi movies, programs in discovery and nat geo is playing a big role in reducing these misconceptions. Thanks for your pointers, some of them are really useful.


Pramod

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

Nice specimen, It is a rat snake. I had a gala weekend, Rescued a cobra from a well. Caught a checkered keelback to teach people handling. My dog learned swiming . I will upload some pics once my internet is up at home.

Pramod

So here are the pics, of my recent adventure .










Pramod

[clevermax]

Hey Pramod, that's some brave stuff. You look like a professional snake catcher with all that equipment. BTW, who clicked that picture so near to the snake?

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by clevermax

Hey Pramod, that's some brave stuff. You look like a professional snake catcher with all that equipment. BTW, who clicked that picture so near to the snake?

"Snake handler", Not catcher for christ's sake . My cousin took these pics, with that nikkon P&S i have, so had to come really close to get that.


Pramod

[S1FIAT]

Any guess? which is this one?

[addyhemmige]

Looks like a bamboo pit viper. btw good shot. Where was this pic taken?

btw, pramod, I think you have got the 'formers' and 'latters' mixed up (in your previous post).

I think you meant to say that the Russell's Viper & Saw scaled vipers are closer to human settlements and hence they are more infamous whereas the Malabar Pit viper & the bamboo pit viper live in dense forests with very little human contact.

@indianchiefrsd,

the snakes you have listed are called the Big 4 (not the poisonous 4). The only reason they are called so is because of the amount of deaths they cause annually , Also, spitting cobras are not found in India

btw, nice points you have compiled there.


To the mods: Don't you guys think this thread would be better in the Shifting Gears section. I feel this is out of place under the current heading