Article by Delaney Eng, Senior Manager (Local Biodiversity), Mandai Nature
July 2024
Whenever I tell someone who is not in the same line of work that I have a soft spot for snakes, I can almost always expect them to return a puzzled expression, questioning why. This dip-stick test shows that even in present times, a large proportion of people still perceive snakes negatively despite there being a growing body of science and education around them.
I do not profess to be an expert on snakes, but through the course of my career with Mandai Wildlife Group and Mandai Nature, various experiences have opened my eyes and shaped my view towards these beautiful, fascinating and versatile creatures with an important role as a predator in our ecosystem. I was recently reminded that there are currently 64 native species of snakes recorded in Singapore, which was somewhat beyond my imagination!
I’ve learnt much from my colleagues through being involved with wildlife rescue in and around Mandai Wildlife Reserve, rehabilitation efforts at our Wildlife Healthcare & Research Centre, to volunteering with the reptile section at the Singapore Zoo which covers regular husbandry, identification of unique patterns of different species, and learning how best to respond to snake encounters. An insight that stuck with me from observing the experts was how handling snakes require a delicate balance of firmness and gentleness.
A Wagler’s pit viper casually resting on a fence in the Mandai Wildlife Reserve – one of my favourite personal photos representing how snakes co-exist with us in the urban environment. (Photo: Delaney Eng)
Recently, I experienced a conflicting situation at home where a member of the household had a strong adverse reaction to a small common wolf snake that had startled them from under an upturned bin in my absence. As someone whose job involves protecting wildlife, my immediate reaction was that of disappointment and guilt that I had not been able to equip them with the appropriate response. Later on, I discovered that the person had fallen backwards in shock and had almost been injured upon discovering the snake. In hindsight, I recognise that it was an instinctive response that should not be easily dismissed. Studies have examined the innate fear of snakes in humans (in its severe form, it is known as Ophidiophobia – it’s a thing!) and attributed it to biological predispositions*. I then shared with them this handy guidebook – Living with Nature – developed by NParks, in hopes of enabling them to better manage an encounter with a snake in future.
Snakes have long been misunderstood as slimy, dangerous, and venomous creatures. If we were to objectively pick apart this portrayal:
“Snakes are slimy” The smooth and shiny scales of a snake give the impression that they are slimy, which might put some people off. In fact, snakes are cool and dry to the touch. Some species like the Kopstein’s bronzeback (Dendrelaphis kopsteini) that can also be found around the Mandai Wildlife Reserve have colourful and iridescent scales that are a delight to watch, glistening under the sun.
“Danger noodle” Contrary to popular belief, most snakes do not aggressively attack humans for no reason and would prefer to move away, rather than confront us. They might appear to adopt a defensive posture when they feel threatened. My encounters with wild snakes in the parks have typically been peaceful, often with the snake slithering away from sight before I can whip out my phone to snap a photo!
“All snakes are venomous” Of the 64 species of snakes found in Singapore, only seven of the native terrestrial species are considered venomous, including the equatorial spitting cobra (Naja sumatrana) and Wagler’s pit viper (Tropidolaemus wagleri), which we find along the forest-edge habitats in the parks.
As with any snake encounter, we should always maintain a safe distance to allow them to go about their business and avoid provoking them.
A serendipitous encounter of a wild, juvenile reticulated python (Malayopython reticulatus) peacefully basking in daylight on some shrubs somewhere in the zoo. (Photo: Delaney Eng)
To better understand our biodiversity in the Mandai Wildlife Reserve, we conduct bi-annual night surveys for reptiles and amphibians around our parks with our staff, volunteers and members of interest groups such as the Herpetological Society Singapore. Through this, we also hope to foster a better appreciation for snakes. During our recent survey in May, we saw four out of 32 snake species previously recorded in the parks – the red-tailed racer (Gonyosoma oxycephalum), painted bronzeback (Dendrelaphis pictus), mangrove cat snake (Boiga dendrophila) and oriental whip snake (Ahaetulla prasina). In fact, the different survey groups encountered so many painted bronzebacks that evening that it ended up becoming a bit of a competition towards the end on who spotted the most!
The findings may seem common to the trained herpetologist, but it was indeed eye-opening for many of our staff and volunteer participants. After these surveys, we often hear new participants exclaim, “I did not know there were so many species of (wild) snakes living within our parks!”. They also take away knowledge about identifying a species or two. It was also encouraging to see colleagues from other departments showing a keen interest in learning more about the biodiversity in the Mandai Wildlife Reserve. A post about our survey findings on our employee communication platform drew many positive responses and helped to raise awareness amongst colleagues who did not join the survey. This helped me realise that people may have been unable to appreciate snakes possibly because they were not well-informed in the first place!
Photo of a mangrove cat snake observed during the Mandai herpetofauna survey contributed by a staff member participating for the first time. (Photo: Chin Lih Shyan)
Learning from my experiences in my journey with local biodiversity conservation, and adopting a patient and empathic approach to understand people’s fears in the process of communicating about snakes can go a long way in converting people. These small moments are affirmations of our efforts and continue to inspire me towards influencing peoples’ impressions of snakes so that they are less feared and better appreciated.
* Zsido, A. N., Polák, J., & Coelho, C. M. (2023). The evolutionary background of ophidiophobia and ophidiophilia. Snakes: Morphology, Function, and Ecology, 479-501.
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