Expedition into the jungle
The sun has just set, but in the dense Amazon rainforest the light hasn’t reached the ground for a long time. The darkness is total, broken only by the light of torches. Dressed in high boots and long trousers, armed with hooks and cameras, we enter the forest. The night is slow, we only cover six kilometres in ten hours, but we walk carefully, looking under everything that could be a hiding place. We see banana spiders (highly venomous), a tamandua or small anteater, puma tracks… and eight snakes, but none of the deadly ones that are the main target of the expedition. We’ll see them a week later.
Objective: To find snakes
Most of the snakes that exist are colubrids or large constrictors, which means they are non-venomous. In Bolivia there are only four species of potentially deadly snakes: the pit viper (Bothrops), the bushmaster (Lachesis), the rattlesnake (Crotalus) and the coral snake (Micrurus). During the two nights with the group of herpetologists, we only saw colubrids. Their aim was to analyse the biodiversity of a particular area, not because they’re researchers, but because they work for an adventure travel company that’s expanding its snake-watching tours.
Illegal hunting in Bolivia
The forest belongs to José, a German who came to Bolivia 30 years ago. He lives modestly and defends his 50 hectares against poachers every night. An exhausting task. In theory, hunting protected wildlife is forbidden in Bolivia. In practice, however, gunshots can be heard every night. The animals end up in restaurants serving caiman, armadillo or monkey meat. Or they end up on the black market as a natural remedy: jaguar teeth (see the documentary Tigre gente). The cubs are sold to collectors. After all, who wouldn’t want a cute little monkey or baby ocelot at home? (Note the irony).
Photo: Michael Schumacher
Snake bites
Back to snakes. The big ones are also victims of poachers who want to profit from their skin or who knows what other magic they hide. And the venomous ones, or those that look like them, are killed out of fear or disgust. The WHO estimates that there are 6000 snakebites a year in Bolivia. These occur mainly in rural areas, where farmers work in the fields without proper footwear.
However, a bite is not always fatal and it takes time for the venom to take effect. Medical facilities in the region are also well equipped with anti-venoms. Anti-snake serum is even available in pharmacies. It’s a single serum used for three types of viper: pit viper, bushmaster and rattlesnake. The danger is not so much the venom itself, but a possible allergic reaction to the serum.
The fourth venomous snake, the coral snake, does not have antivenom. It’s too expensive and rarely needed. This has a logical explanation: Coral snakes are quiet snakes, they only bite when actively attacked and mistreated, and even then they don’t inject venom with every bite. The bushmaster is similar. It’s a very large snake, but it’s not aggressive – as long as you leave it alone.
The pit vipers, on the other hand, are not good friends. They’re the ones that cause the most bites. They’re hunters, dependent on their venom. And when they sense something approaching, they stand still, trusting that their pattern will camouflage them well, and if not, they can still bite.
But like any animal, if you leave them alone, they’ll do nothing.
Snake breeding at Toni’s
We finally saw the bushmaster and the pit viper at Toni’s house. Toni is an Italian who has lived in Bolivia for 30 years and bought 360 hectares to create a reserve. He also started breeding snakes. The idea was to sell the venom. For a while he sent it to Argentina to a doctor who made homeopathic pills. At his peak, he had up to 120 snakes. But the numbers did not add up. Now he only has about 8 pit vipers and 20 bushmasters, but they have no real use. Sometimes tourists come (it is very difficult to get there and hardly known) and researchers from different universities. Usually to study biodiversity in general, especially insects.
I wonder what could be done. They should be released, but of course most people don’t like the idea of having more venomous snakes around. Imagine the scandal that would cause. So they stay there. At least we got to see these snakes. Although we also saw a pit viper in the middle of the forest at night when we went for a walk. And also a small boa constrictor, beautiful.
Snakes are a species that generate a lot of fear. Many species have yet to be scientifically described and there is much to be discovered. But what we do know is that they’re essential to maintaining the balance of an ecosystem. It would only take a little effort and investment in public education (not just in America, but in Europe too) and people would know that they’re not a danger, they just need to be left alone.