Thailand has an abundance of venomous snakes. there are around sixty species of venomous snakes in Thailand that are deadly for humans including multiple species of cobras, vipers, kraits, sea snakes, Asian coral snakes and the venerated king cobra, which is not actually a cobra. Annually, About 2,500 people die of snake bites in Thailand.
Images of snakes, especially cobras, are often found at temples and holy monuments. None more than I know of at Wat Jed Yot in Chiang Mai.
Originally founded in 1893 under the name Red Unalom Society, the Thai Red Cross Society became affiliated with the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in 1921. Within the society, headquartered in Bangkok, is the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute. Its purpose is to hold venomous snakes, of which it has thousands from around the world, extract and research snake venom and to produce antivenom/vaccines to treat snake bites and rabies. They also have an educational mission. Most of the antivenom used in Southeast Asia is manufactured by the institute.
Venom is milked from snakes using a small round dish, the edge of which is pressed against venom sacks and the venom squirts through fangs onto the dish.
Outside of Bangkok the institute owns a horse farm. Venom is injected into a horse in small quantities. The horse builds antibodies which are collected and concentrated to create an antivenom. The antivenom used must match the kind of snake someone was bitten by. Doctors can usually identify the snake by the bite marks; however, children are taught about the types of snakes so that they may confirm which antivenom should be used. Those who survive a snake bite may suffer disability due to permanent tissue damage.
There are twenty-three species of vipers alone; eleven of them are green in color.
Cobras tend to dominate the curiosity of visitors. The Thai Asian cobra can easily be identified by its large hood which expands when the snake feels threatened or irritated. The back of the hood has an oval shaped black mark. These are the snakes of snake charmer fame. They typically grow to about 1.5 meters in length. Asian cobra bites can be deadly. The venom is a neurotoxin which paralyzes muscles and, in the case of a severe bite, can cause respiratory failure or cardiac arrest. Respiratory paralysis may occur within three to four hours. Antivenom should be given within 30 minutes of a bite. The Asian cobra is responsible for most cobra bites of humans in Thailand because they feed on rodents which are found on the outskirts of villages.
Fewer people are bitten by the more lethal king cobra. King cobras stay to themselves and live in the forest. They feed on other snakes (including their own kind) and lizards. They are large, growing to an average length of about four meters or thirteen feet. The record king cobra as reported by Wikipedia measured 5.85 meters or 19.2 feet. King cobras, like other snakes, can determine a prey’s location with its forked tongue, acting in stereo, that senses smell and they can detect moving prey from almost 100 meters away. After a big meal a king cobra can go for months without another one. Because of a king cobra’s length, they can strike from a long distance, which might not be realized until it is too late.
The king cobra is the only snake that builds an above ground nest using dry leaf litter, typically located at the base of a tree. Nests can be as wide as 140 centimeters (55 inches) and as high as 55 centimeters (22 inches). Clutch sizes range from 7 to 43 eggs with incubation periods of 66 to 105 days. The venom of offspring is as toxic as a full-grown snake and they are aggressive as are females during incubation. A king cobra bite results in death in about 30 minutes.
The snake farm is a popular tourist attraction and demonstrations in English are held twice a week. At the end of the presentation there is an opportunity to have some fun, like holding this albino Burmese python.
In 1987 at a market in Bangkok there was a snake handler offering a large Burmese python for holding for a nominal fee. I took the bait and the handler wrapped the python around my shoulders. He then explained he was going to run an errand and he would be back soon, leaving me to feel the snake now tightening around my abdomen as its enormous head bobbed at my eye level, inches from my face, forked tongue flickering. I felt quite vulnerable being alone with such a large snake. The handler returned in five unbelievably long minutes.
Sources: Wikipedia, Thai National Parks, United States National Institutes of Health, Thailand Snakes, Thai Red Cross.
