Snake season is open: vipers woke up in Russia

The beginning of the summer cottage season in Russia traditionally coincides with the awakening of snakes and their active movement in nature. In several regions of the country, cases of viper bites have already been recorded. Izvestia discussed what to do when meeting poisonous snakes and how dangerous they can be to humans.

First bites

The season of meetings with snakes in Russia has officially begun – both experts and alarming reports that have begun to appear in the media since the beginning of April are talking about this. So, in the first days of the month, a 15-year-old Muscovite ran into a viper, who, in the company of amateur biologists, went to the Astrakhan region.

Since childhood, a young man is fond of snakes: he catches them, measures, photographs and releases them. So this time, after the group stopped in a remote village, the schoolboy went to explore the surroundings in search of interesting encounters with animals.

At some point, a teenager noticed a steppe viper in the forest and tried to measure it, but in response she bit the young naturalist’s hand. However, despite the bite, the student completed what he had begun, measured the snake and set it free. The young man considered that the poison of the steppe viper was not fatal and did not panic.

After some time, the teenager began to feel dizzy and nausea began. There were no hospitals nearby, so he decided to lie down for a bit, and then, as if nothing had happened, he continued to explore the wildlife. True, when he returned to Moscow, an amateur serpentologist noticed that he had swelling of a finger on his left hand.

The boy made it to the emergency room on his own, where the doctors listened to him and called an ambulance. A team of doctors decided to hospitalize the student for a full examination.

In the Sverdlovsk region, a viper attacked a 29-year-old resident of the Krasnogvardeisky village. The snake stung the man in the right hand when he was walking in the forest. Doctors currently assess the patient’s condition as satisfactory.

And in Central Russia, a case of a viper attack was recently recorded in Yaroslavl. According to a Izvestia source in one of the city hospitals, the man was admitted to the surgery department with limb edema.

Vipers in the snow

Most often snakes wake up in late March – early April, in the northern regions a little later, serpentologist Vladimir Cherlin told Izvestia. In the Moscow and Leningrad regions, vipers appear as soon as the warm spring sun peeps out.

– This year I was sent photos of how the snakes are warming themselves, lying in the snow, – says the expert. – In the spring they begin their period of sexual activity, and they can gather in large groups. At this time, they are more nervous and aggressive than usual, so you need to be careful with them.

In central Russia, two types of snakes are most often found: common vipers and snakes. They are easy to distinguish from each other by their appearance: snakes are usually thin, with a black or dark blue background of the body, and yellow spots are visible on the back of the head on both sides. Vipers are denser, can have different colors – from gray to bluish and reddish, and a wide black zigzag stripe on the back. However, the interlocutor of Izvestia admits that a person who sees a snake while walking is usually frightened and cannot immediately distinguish a poisonous viper from a harmless snake. Therefore, it is better not to contact either one or the other.

According to the serpentologist, vipers never attack people just like that. But if they come too close or accidentally step on the tail, they can attack. Therefore, having noticed a viper in the grass, it is better to move away.

– Don’t panic, run, wave your arms. Try to step back slowly, without sudden movements, without turning your back to the snake, advises Ney Georgieva, senior medical consultant at Teledoctor24.

Forest danger

When going into the woods where snakes can be found, you need to follow simple safety measures. For example, wearing closed clothing (which also protects against ticks) and shoes or rubber boots. Through them, the snake will not bite a leg, even if you accidentally step on it, says Vladimir Cherlin.

– In the summer, when picking mushrooms and berries, it is better to take a twig or a thin stick with you. It happens – you stick your hand into the grass, and there is a viper, therefore it is better to first move the branch. The snake will get scared and crawl away, – he says.

For their habitat, vipers usually choose wild places, adds herpetologist Ivan Ermolov. Therefore, they cannot be found in the city or in landscaped parks. But there are many of them in nature – especially if you go further into the depths.

Vipers love places with high humidity: swamps, banks of streams and rivers, dense damp shady thickets. In warm weather, they can be found in open places – they like to bask in the sun. They usually live where they winter and do not crawl beyond a radius of 20–30 m.

Snakes in the country

Sometimes vipers start in the dachas too. They are attracted by areas near water bodies or unkempt gardens with tall grass and heaps of construction waste – pieces of slate and planks, piled up logs and compost heaps. It is such places, according to serpentologists, that become snake dwellings.

– Vipers can crawl into the yard, but they only stay when they see hiding places for themselves. Therefore, if you do not want to have snakes, keep the site in order, – advises Vladimir Cherlin.

Returning to the dacha after a long absence, it is advisable to carefully inspect the basement, cellar, shed – any buildings in which snakes can settle.

– Do not immediately turn over objects lying on the ground – knock on them, if there is a viper – it will crawl away, – says Neya Georgieva. – Create the most unattractive living conditions for them: clean the area, clear the weeds, use a lawn mower – snakes do not like noise from it. Get a cat, dog or hedgehog – the main enemy of vipers.

You can also purchase a special repeller that creates vibrations that are unpleasant for snakes, or hang knockers on the doors of a street toilet and rattle them before entering the building. It is better to walk around the yard in sneakers – most of the bites are on the feet.

– If you saw a snake that crawled out to bask in the sun, do not hit it with a shovel or try to stone it. It’s still a living creature, albeit poisonous and with its own habits, says Ivan Ermolov. – The most reliable way to get them out is to try to get rid of rodents in the area. When the vipers lose their food supply, they will leave on their own.

If you did kill the snake, do not touch it with your hands, adds Neya Georgieva. A dead viper needs to be picked up with a stick or shovel and carried away from the site. The same should be done if you find discarded shed skin – other snakes may come to the smell.

The doctor recommends that the owners, in whose areas the vipers have gotten, have an antihistamine (antiallergic) medicine in the form of tablets and injections in the medicine cabinet. In addition, you may need antiseptic solutions and drugs for pressure – if there are people in the family with cardiovascular diseases.

“The poison works in two directions”

According to statistics, the probability of death after being bitten by a viper is only about 1%. However, there are those who are at risk. These are children, the elderly and people with diseases of the cardiovascular system.

“They also include allergy sufferers: my friend, who worked with poisonous snakes for many years, died from a viper bite at the age of 60,” serpentologist Vladimir Cherlin says in an interview with Izvestia. – He started anaphylactic shock.

According to Cherlin, snake venom is a protein preparation, therefore, if a person is prone to allergies, a bite can be several times more dangerous for him. When going into the forest, allergy sufferers must take an antihistamine and, just in case, take the pills with them.

Immediately after the bite, the victim begins to swell, which can then spread, for example, to the entire limb. Further, there may be dizziness and vomiting, and then – complications in the internal organs, heart and blood vessels.

“The poison acts in two directions: on tissues, blood and the nervous system,” explains Vladimir Cherlin. – Therefore, it is very important in what condition the victim is. If he panics, the poisoning is much more dangerous. It is clear that with a snakebite, hardly anyone will remain calm. But, if you are next to the bitten one, your task is to calm him down in every possible way.

First aid for a snakebite is to rinse the wound with cold running water and disinfect it with chlorhexidine. Then you must definitely take an antihistamine and call a doctor. The sooner help is provided, the less negative consequences will be from a meeting with a snake.

“Try to immobilize your hand – muscle contractions accelerate the absorption of the poison,” explains Neya Georgieva. – But in no case should a tourniquet be applied. If it is applied incorrectly, there is a risk of developing necrosis or gangrene.

While the victim is waiting for doctors, he is advised to drink plenty of water. Drinking tea, coffee or even more alcohol is not worth it: these drinks will dilate blood vessels and enhance the absorption of poison.

Vladimir Cherlin also refers to undesirable actions in the event of a snakebite as cauterization of the bite, attempts to cut it out or suck the poison out of the wound: all this will only lead to the loss of precious time and will not help the victim in any way. By the way, the suction of the poison is also dangerous because after it the help of doctors may be required for the “rescuer” himself, if he has microcracks, wounds or bad teeth in his mouth. Through them, poison can easily enter the body.