Founding members of Urvanam, an animal protection unit from Tirunagar, debunked several myths regarding venomous and non-venomous snakes at a ‘Snake awareness workshop’ at The American College here on Monday.
The workshop was aimed at addressing snake protection, rescue and snakebite treatment. Students of the Green Club of The American College got the opportunity to see some species of snakes such as Indian Rat Snake (Ptyas mucosa), Indian Cobra and Green Vine Snake (Oxybelis fulgidus) up close and personal. They also cleared their doubts and myths surrounding the reptiles.
R. Sagadevan of Urvanam, who has been bitten by snakes 46 times (two venomous bites), said snakes were largely harmless till provoked. “There are over 300 types of snakes in India but only four are venomous. With Madurai city expanding by the day, we are encroaching on their land. They naturally enter homes and mark their territory,” he said. Co-founder P. R. Viswanath enlightened the audience about the vital role played by snakes in food chain. “Snakes are farmers’ friends as they control rat and frog population in agricultural land. It is important to understand that one does not need to beat snakes to pulp upon seeing them,” he said.
Mr. Sagadevan lamented the poor environmental conditions in today’s world. They educated students on the steps to be taken in case of a snakebite. Forest Rangers R. Saravana Kumar and S. Arumugam were present.
