AIKEN STANDARD (S Carolina) 30 April 08 Venomous snake puts man in hospital; learn and prevent bites (Mike Gellatly)
Sleek, slithering and solitary - snakes are often misunderstood, frequently reviled and constantly feared.
As one high-profile bite has shown, Aikenites should be aware of our serpent neighbors and respect their space.
Aiken Public Safety animal control officer Jeff Wilson spent much of Monday in the hospital, recovering from a bite from one of South Carolina's most common snakes. And while he is expected to return to work today, he had a few harrowing minutes waiting on Aiken EMS after the reptile punctured his arm.
Wilson was in the undeveloped portion of Woodside around noon Monday and had captured a stray dog running loose near a creek. Trying to pull himself up out of the creek bed, he reached up to grab a tree limb and instead clutched on to the snake, said Lt. David Turno, Aiken Public Safety spokesperson.
The snake bit Wilson near his elbow, and the veteran officer knew immediately that it was a venomous water moccasin and radioed for help.
Turno said Wilson was very clear when he called on his fellow officers, adding that Wilson immediately explained that the snake was venomous.
Wilson made it out of the woods and to the roadway where emergency crews met him, gave him oxygen and then took him to the emergency room.
"There he was given antivenin," Turno said. "He was OK."
Although he was shaken up, Wilson recovered quickly.
Many of his fellow officers inquired about the bite and checked in on Wilson. He was resting at home Tuesday.
"The doctor told him the snake didn't get a very good bite on him," Turno said. "He was very lucky."
The Palmetto State is home to a half-dozen venomous snakes, and all but one of them has been sighted in Aiken County, according to SREL ecologist Dr. Whit Gibbons.
"In South Carolina, there are three rattlesnakes - the eastern diamondback, the timber or canebrake and the pigmy," Gibbons said. "The cottonmouth, or water moccasin, and the copperhead are common. Finally, the coral snake, which is very rare."
None of these snakes is aggressive, but all will defend themselves if they feel threatened. Gibbons' main advice is that these animals be enjoyed but not engaged.
And do not pick up a snake, even if you think you know what it is.
So how do you know one squirming serpent from another?
Cottonmouth or water moccasin: If threatened, the cottonmouth will show you how it got its name.
"They will display ... opening their mouth ... but we found they didn't bite until they were picked up," Gibbons said of his study on this pit viper.
A distinctive mark on this snake is pits between its eyes and nostrils. A defensive snake, the cottonmouth will run for water unless it feels it is in grave danger.
Copperhead: Prone to striking if stepped on or stepping near it, the copperhead is not aggressive but will strike out.
"Unfortunately, we can make them feel threatened without our knowing about it," Gibbons said. "More people are bitten by copperheads than any other species of snake. However, lethal bites by are virtually unheard of."
A light brown, copper-colored reptile, the copperhead is also identifiable by dark, saddle-shaped blotches on its back.
Coral snake: "Red and yellow - kill a fellow. Red, black - OK, Jack." Locally, this old saying is true, but not so much in other parts of the Americas.
"My response is, if you have to remember that rhyme, you shouldn't be picking them up," Gibbons said.
The vibrantly colored rings of the coral snake can easily be spotted and be used to tell it apart from the copycat king snake.
Other than its colors, the coral snake is smaller and more slender with a round and black-tipped head.
Different than the other Palmetto-based venomous snakes, the coral does not have retractable fangs that pierce; rather, the smaller snake, related to a cobra, will latch on and chew on its victim, secreting venom.
Pigmy rattlesnake: The name explains them - pigmy rattlesnakes are the smallest venomous snake. They don't reach much larger than 18 inches long.
With fantastic camouflage, these snakes can lie in your yard for literally years without being discovered, Gibbons said.
"You practically have to pick it up for it to bite you," he added.
A grayish snake with dark blotches, the pigmy blends in extremely well to its environment.
Canebrake (timber) rattlesnake: The largest venomous snake known to be in Aiken, the timber rattlesnake can be found all over the Eastern United States.
Most people bitten by the snake were reaching into wood piles or picking items up from the forest floor.
These snakes are gray and have a faint orange stripe down the center of their back. They also have fairly distinctive chevrons, spaced a few inches apart, running their length. Another distinctive feature of the timber is its velvet-colored black tail.
A four- to five-foot timber is not uncommon, but the rattlesnake can reach more than six feet in length.
Diamondback rattlesnake: The largest and most toxic snake in South Carolina is not known to be present in Aiken County. The closest encounter was at Avondale more than three decades ago.
With a venom 10 times as toxic as the copperhead's, the diamondback is the most dangerous of serpentine predators to stumble upon.
Brown with a very yellow, distinctive and ornate design, the up to eight-foot long diamondback is a fearsome predator.
"They are defensive only," Gibbons said. "If they see you in time and can escape in time, they will move away. If you keep it up, they will bite you."
Whatever species of snake, deaths from a snake bite in South Carolina are rare.
"Most bites are to males in their 20s," Gibbons said. "They seem to be attracted to testosterone."
If you are bitten, the best thing to do is get to an emergency treatment facility, Gibbons said.
"Don't panic or overreact," he added. "You're injured but will be fine to get to the hospital. Studies have shown more harm is done by first aid than by the snake."
Specifically, Gibbons said that cutting a bite or applying a tourniquet is dangerous and rarely helpful.
"The first thing to do, if you are bitten on hand, grab where it bit you and suck," he added.
It is also wise to remember that up to half of venomous snake bites are dry bites when no venom is injected.
"They are just warning you; it's just a threat display," Gibbons said.
Venomous snake puts man in hospital; learn and prevent bites