Snake Bite

Each year around 5,000 people are bitten by poisonous snakes, yet only ~100 bites result in fatalities. This is less than the number of people who are struck by lightning or die from food poisoning.

If you aren't sure of your snake identification, there are some general differences between poisonous and non-poisonous snakes to look for. Poisonous snakes have a triangular head (non-poisonous snakes have rounded heads), no neck, a thicker tail and body, a pit or heat gland between the eyes, vertical eye pupils (non-poisonous snakes have a rounded eye pupil), poison glands, and hinged fangs. However, if any snake is close enough for the fangs to be easily visible, we suggest that you just run.