There are not many regions in the world that haven’t been colonised by snakes and other reptiles. Snakes are even found in towns, although it is only the friendlier ones that tend to survive human wrath. However, if you want to look for a few of the more uncommon snakes, you could try in parks and fields, on beaches or in rivers and ponds and even in the sea, depending on where you live, of course, as sea snakes tend to inhabit warmer, tropical waters.
You will have to be very alert and accustom your eyes to spot even the smallest movement. Wear clothing of dull, drab colours and move slowly, stopping often to listen for movement in the grass or bushes. In the beginning, you will have many false starts, until you learn to tell the difference between the sounds of the different animals that live or hunt in the grass.
Snakes are not easy to find, because most of the adventurous snakes get killed by frightened (and often ignorant) humans, but good advice is to look for relatively damp areas in arid regions and, on the other hand, dry spots in damp areas. Look for where their prey might congregate. For instance, near water for toads and frogs. Watch for frightened lizards or birds fleeing for all they are worth. And listen out for geckos warning each other of the presence of a predator.
If you must disturb anything, at least don’t damage it and furthermore, make sure you put it back as you found it. Two useful tools to have while out looking for snakes and other reptiles are binoculars (for tree snakes) and a snake-hook, which should also be used for moving bits of debris so that you don’t risk getting bitten by a snake or stung by a scorpion. A camera, a torch and a notebook and pen are more or less essential, depending on how seriously you treat your hobby of herpetology.
You might also take a rule or tape to measure your specimens and a few plastic bags and boxes to hold them while you are doing so. However, do not kill anything and do not take anything away with you either! Aside from it not being right to wander into their territory and cause mayhem, it is often contrary to the law too. Be very wary of picking up any snake that you cannot definitely identify as non-venomous. You could be a long way from anywhere and will probably not have any anti-venom with you. Since many snakes can kill within 30 minutes, you would almost certainly die.
To summarize, go looking for snakes by all means. However, take it easy and slowly and wear camouflaged clothing. Furthermore, wear strong, climbing boots to afford you some protection where you are most vulnerable and do not move anything you don’t have to. Use a snake-hook to move things if you need to; a tape, torch, camera, notebook and pen to record your experience and/or findings and a couple of clear plastic receptacles just in case you feel that you have to pick something up.
I hope you enjoy your hunt for snakes and other reptiles, but remember that they are not friendly and they are certainly not pets and be wary of bites especially when your search is not taking place in the gardens of a hospital!
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