19/11/2023
AWARENESS POST
It's been a very long two days.
I know that we haven't been that great at keeping you all updated with what's been captured and released recently, but I did feel it was necessary to bring the two most recent incidents, involving Black Mambas, to everyone's attention.
Yesterday, we arrived at a call in a rural area only to discover a Black Mamba in a tuck shop.
This snake was beaten by the people who were armed with spades, bush knives and pangas.
They proudly admitted to this ... together with the fact that they doused his face with thinners.
We made a drive through to Umkomaas where Miguel and I tried to clean him off as best we could.... during which, he began "coughing" up blood.
It wasn't in the trachea, so the injury was not in the lungs, as is visible in the photos, but obviously , this poor snake has internal injuries.
One obvious injury is a spinal fracture , fortunately with the spinal cord still intact .
We weren't certain whether he would make the night, but surprisingly, he did and is behaving more like a Mamba ......
Today's story......
I received a call from an area that I do not cover. I passed it on to another handler, only for him to receive a voice note, indicating that they have "trapped" the snake, and that they now required assistance in removing it.
This poor female Black Mamba was literally crushed beneath these bricks... the force of which, started pushing her eggs from her body. She undoubtedly would have suffered tremendously.
It was a pointless situation that nobody could have actually done much about, because even if, by some miracle, she had survived the ordeal with the assistance of someone removing those bricks off of her body, she would undoubtedly have died from her injuries.
Nevertheless, I phoned the people back to ask them if I could make the trip to assist and attempt to save her eggs, even if I was unable to save her..... the woman told me that her neighbours came round and smashed her face in, whereafter, they burnt her remains, so there went my plans of saving her offspring.....
Both of these situations are recipes for disaster and someone could have easily been bitten.
As Jason Arnold so rightly pointed out in a comment on a similar post:
"Not to mention that a snake that's now been attacked by humans, is going to be more dangerous for us to work with and if we end up being bitten by a really angry, scared and injured, venomous snake, it's going to make damn sure that it pumps us with all the venom it can.
Please people, leave the snakes alone. The only time it becomes dangerous to you, is when you make it feel scared or threatened.
Call a professional to assist, otherwise leave it alone and give it the opportunity to move away on its own, which they always will do if given the chance."
By interfering and trying to injure the snake, by whatever means, you're not only endangering your own lives, but the lives of the people that you call to assist you.
Handy numbers: any one of these people can put you in touch with a professional if they do not cover your particular area.
Jason - 0827456375 - Durban North & Surrounds
Caitlin - 0842054677 - Amanzimtoti & Surrounds
Miguel - +27 72 612 3218 - Umkomaas & Surrounds
Byron - +27 82 894 6783 Upper Highway
