16 October 2012

Bali - Snakes

Bali is known as the island of the 1000 gods, but they will not help if you
suddenly stand face to face with a snake.
But you're in luck, because of the dozens of snakes in Bali there are only 6 that are poisonous. Many people worry about the danger of snakes. In generally snakes are very shy and will do everything to avoid contact. They are not fast aggressive unless they are threatened.

You sometimes hear of snake bites, but in most cases it is the people themselves who harass the snake and finally get attacked. The snakes in Bali that are toxic not produce lethal poison, but neurotoxin - that means their poison paralysis.

Treatment of a snake bite:

Try to remember what kind of snake has bitten, which is very important for the treatment of the bite. Particular, let the bite bleeding for about a minute. This allows the body to naturally manner expel the poison.
Clean the bite with water and then with a disinfectant such as Betadine.
If the bite is below the knee, wrap a bandage around the knee or above. If it is below the elbow wrap a bandage around the elbow or just above it. If you do not have a bandage use a sarong, shirt, scarf or towel.

Keep the bitten limb at the same height as the heart, if it is too high more poison flow to the heart, too low means that the injured limbs begin to swell. Bring the victim immediately to hospital Sanglah in Denpasar, the only hospital with facilities against snake bites. Do not wait for an ambulance - call the hospital and let them know you're coming with a snake bite. If a spitting cobra spray poison into the eyes wash immediately with clean cold water. If water not available use milk or urine.

Poisonous snakes

King Cobra. (Ular Raya)
The King Cobra is one of the most poisonous snakes in Bali. This snake can be up to 6 meters long. His color is brown and has a distinctive head that comes up when it is threatened. By the size of the snake and the size of the jaw about 80% of its poison is issued during the bite. More than half of these bites are fatal if they are not treated. The symptoms appear about 15, 30 minutes after the bite and include dizziness, difficulty breathing, pain around the bite and drooping eyelids.

Malayan Krait (Ular Katang Tebu)
This is one of the most poisonous snakes in Bali, but he is very shy and it is unlikely that he will bite unless it is constantly harassed. It is a glossy black snake that can grow to one and a half meter. Sometimes the skin is black with alternating black and white stripes around the entire length of his body. The belly of the snake have a cream color or a dirty white color. The bite causes almost no pain or swelling, but the bite is fatal if not treated.

Javan Spitting Cobra (Ular Sendok)
The Spitting Cobra is related to the King Cobra but slightly smaller. It is usually brown/black of color but also light brown or light beige. They usually spit poison in the eyes of a attacker if they are threatened, causing temporary blindness and extreme pain. In addition, the poison can lead to local necrosis around the site of the bite.

Oriental Whip Snake or Asian Vine Snake (Ular Pucuk)
This long thin snake varies in color from bright green to light brown, sometimes green with white dots.
It has yellow markings around its eyes. He is often confused with the more dangerous Green Pit Viper, but his body is long and thin, and the head is oblong instead of arrow shaped. There may be a thin pale line along the length of the body. He can be quite long (up to 2 meters) and lives in trees. He is very shy and it is unlikely that he will attack - if so then is in most cases only a local swelling and pain.

Green Pit Viper (Ular Hijau)
Usually found in trees and shrubs, this snake quickly attacks after only a little provocation. He has a broad triangular head with heat sensors "pits" on both sides that he use in hunting, and a red or pink colored tail. The snake is relatively short, not more than one meter, and has a fairly thick body. The head is separated from the body by a narrow neck. This is the only green snake in Bali that can kill. The symptoms are headache, nausea, convulsions, diarrhea and dizziness. The poison causes excessive bleeding or excessive clotting. Without treatment 1-10% of the victims dies. There is no antivirus available in Bali for this snake, but with prompt treatment it is rarely a fatal bite.

Sea snakes (Ular Laut)
There are two species of sea snakes in Bali - the ordinary and the banded sea snake with colored covers over the entire length of its body. This snake is poisonous, but because of the position of the teeth it's unlikely to cause serious injury. But every bite of a snake should be considered as serious and you should have immediate treatment in the hospital.

But let me not spoil your holiday fun, I know from experience, snakes are more afraid than people, the chance that you meet one is minimal, and if you just behave nothing will happen.

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