Why you should not fear snakes: Rom and Zai Whitaker on understanding the fascinating creatures

When it comes to snakes, misconceptions are not far behind. At a college talk by Zai Whitaker in Chennai, a biology teacher in the audience stood up and declared that she was convinced that snakes drink milk, recounts the writer, naturalist and teacher, who has recently co-authored a new book with the well-known herpetologist Romulus Whitaker, The Book of Indian Snakes, published by Juggernaut.

The same teacher also appeared to believe that rat snakes strike with their tails and that snake stones cure snakebites, she recalls. “Here was a science teacher determined that you could cure snake bites with herbs and snake stones. In spite of the books, the articles, the conversations, these are deep-rooted beliefs,” says Zai, over a Zoom call.

The Book of Indian Snakes takes some of these myths head-on, stressing that while it is important to respect snakes, they should not be feared. The book also delves into the crucial ecosystem services snakes provide, highlighting their incredible utility to humans because their main prey are rodents.

Zai Whitaker
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

“A healthy snake population in the fields is a much better way to control rodents than the poisonous pesticides that cause so much harm to our environment and wildlife,” states the book, which goes on to answer many basic questions about snakes, such as the approximate number of species in India, their habitats, life histories, and venom information. The book also has a selection of species pages offering “snakey stats” and trivia on some of the most common snakes in the country, including the spectacled cobra, common krait, Indian rock python and rat snake.

The brain behind the book’s structure, says Zai, was their publisher Anita Mani, who runs the Indian Pitta book imprint with Juggernaut Books. “Also, with my writing for children, it is becoming more and more obvious that the question-and-answer format works well. We focused on the questions and information people have been seeking for the last 50 years,” she says.

Rom, who was also on the Zoom call, adds, “The questions are usually very similar, and the parents hand them down to their kids. I’ve always said that while people’s attitude towards snakes is often negative, they are fascinated (by them),” he says, pointing out that children, in particular, have a sense of wonder about these misunderstood creatures. .

The book, according to Rom, was an “exciting challenge” because he feels that it is not easy for people to understand snakes. “It takes a little while. I often say that they are creatures from Mars because we can’t relate to them in any way.” Rom and Zai had collaborated earlier on another book about snakes for young readers, The Snakes Around Us. “It was a basic book for the National Book Trust, with some black-and-white pictures and drawings. We felt that it was time for a book with lots of colour pictures, good photography and printing so that it becomes easier for people to identify the snakes,” says Zai.

An Irula extracts venom from a cobra
| Photo Credit:
Romulus Whitaker

Additionally, since the NBT book was published in the ‘80s, much has changed in our understanding of snakes. “For instance, so many more snakes have been discovered, the whole process and treatment of snakebite has changed, first-aid practices have changed… so, we thought it was important to update that information as well,” she says.

According to Rom, “as far as taxonomy is concerned, the study of speciation in snakes has grown by leaps and bounds.” While snakes didn’t receive much attention from biologists in the past, “nowadays you’ve got literally dozens of very talented, mostly younger herpetologists. In the last 20 years, since we came out with the first book in 2004, over 100 new species of snakes have been described, in part due to advances in molecular techniques.”

Currently, biologists estimate that we have about 368 species of snakes in the country. But, Rom says, “that is a figure for today, not tomorrow because tomorrow there will be half-a-dozen more”.

Antivenom research is another field of study that has changed significantly since The Snakes Around Us was first published, an important development given that India is the world’s snakebite capital, registering at least 50,000 deaths due to snakebites annually.

A spectacled cobra, one of the big four poisonous snakes of India.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Unfortunately, many Indians prefer to go to local faith healers to treat snakebites, instead of going to a hospital or a primary healthcare centre. “In a majority of the cases, he (the faith healer) succeeds because a majority of snakebites are not fatal, but this works against us,” says Rom. It is important, he says, for people to realise that a snakebite is a medical emergency. “There is only one treatment for snakebite, which is antivenom, and you need to go to the hospital right away,” he says.

Rom, however, is quick to point out a significant issue with antivenom efficacy. Over 80% of the venom used to create antivenom in India is extracted by Irula Snake Catchers Industrial Cooperative Society, founded in 1978 by Rom in Vada Nemmeli, near Chennai.

The saw-scaled viper, Echis carinatus
| Photo Credit:
Romulus Whitaker

However, due to geographic variation in the biochemistry of snake venom, the antivenom made with venom mostly from just one part of the country is not always an effective antidote to snakebites in other parts of India.

“The fact that they’re producing venom from only Tamil Nadu raised a question because now the government has proposed, and we have been involved in this proposal, the creation of regional venom centres in different parts of the country.”

Moreover, while the polyvalent anti-snake venom (ASV) currently available in India can be used to treat bites of the ‘Big Four’ snakes — Indian or spectacled cobra, common krait, Russell’s viper, and saw-scaled viper — it does not work on all snakebites.

“Although these are the most widely distributed snakes, there are other species that have to be considered,” he says, adding that having regional venom collection centres could ensure that antivenom accounts for all these different snakes and geographic variation.

A green vine snake
| Photo Credit:
EMMANUAL YOGINI

Rom and Zai, who have both started working on their next projects, hope that this book will draw more children into learning about the natural world. “For children, the more wonder, fascination and knowledge they accumulate about Nature, the better it is not just for conservation but also for their own mental health. As COVID research has taught us, it is important to go outdoors,” believes Zai, adding that this has often been quoted as the benefit of having zoos. “Not only is it about the animals, but being outdoors in the greenery is definitely a part of it.”