There are far more plausible explanations for the observed snakebite trends in California. For one thing, the highly adaptable Southern Pacific rattlers are less likely to flee from development than other snakes; consequently, increasing human encroachment into their habitat may lead to more encounters and more bites. As for snakebite severity, Hayes suggests it probably has less do with the biter than with the bitten: “We also have to realize that changes are happening to general human health and in the treatment of snakebites,” he says. “There have been big increases in our society in asthma and obesity, which would predispose snakebite victims to more severe reactions.”
Southern California’s extended drought is another factor, decreasing snake reproduction and thus the number of small, juvenile snakes. This leaves larger, more dangerous snakes around to do the biting, and because large snakes inject more venom than small ones, their bites are more severe. However, the odds that a person in California will die from contact with a venomous snake or lizard in a year are still just 1 in 61,100,000.
Everywhere Else
Many areas have no poisonous snakes, but you can find rattlesnakes all over the country. The U.S. harbors fifteen species of them. Encounters are common, but attacks rare; according to Professor Walter E. Howard of the University of California, Davis, out of a total of just 1,000 rattlesnake bites a year, fewer than a dozen lead to death. The US Humane Society warns that the popularity of rattlesnake roundups is leading to the possible extinction of some species and points out that they play an important ecological role in controlling rodent populations.
Still, ophidiophobia (fear of snakes) isn’t likely to go away any time soon. The odds that an adult in the U.S. is afraid of snakes are 1 in 1.96 (51 percent), and the odds that an adult in the U.S. is very afraid of snakes are 1 in 2.78. This fear of slithering serpents may, in fact, be deeply rooted in our biology. Just like politics.
Originally published on Book of Odds
