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Adder Hysteria: |
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Peter Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2008 No. of posts: 260  View other posts by Peter |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 Taken from page 2 of today`s (Thursday, June 19, 2008) South Wales Evening Post; A teenage girl needed emergency hospital treatment after being bitten on the hand by a poisonous snake in Gower. These things are nothing but a dangerous nuisance--I hope that this young girl recovers fully from her experience, and it will not deter her from visiting beautiful country areas in the future. Meanwhile, if these creatures are known to live in certain areas, let`s see some warning signs to alert people. This girl could have lost her life. Liz, Swansea 
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Peter Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2008 No. of posts: 260 View other posts by Peter |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 Fair enough about warning signs, and I too hope that the person concerned in the adder bite incident has a speedy recovery, but the attitude towards naturally occuring wildlife displayed by the author of the above response is unreasonable. I should be used to it by now of course, but the sheer blind disgust for the animal concerned that prevails amongst so very many people never fails to astound me.
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Suzi Senior Member Joined: 06 Apr 2005 No. of posts: 860 View other posts by Suzi |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 Warning signs would likely lead to people arming themselves with big sticks! Clobbering any adders they see would be seen as a public service. This country is pretty thin on the ground as regards dangerous wildlife and I bet countries well populated with venomous snakes don't put signs up about them. Suz |
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adamanteus Senior Member Joined: 03 Jun 2008 No. of posts: 66  View other posts by adamanteus |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 It still amazes me, in this 'educated age' we live in, that people react to Adders in such an irrational and alarmist way. Further education needed, me thinks. James. |
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Peter Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2008 No. of posts: 260 View other posts by Peter |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 True, both of you. I do think that some people will never accept the fact that adders have a right to live in what little is left of their domain however. 
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GemmaJF Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 No. of posts: 2090  View other posts by GemmaJF |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 Link to the article Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant |
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Vicar Senior Member Joined: 02 Sep 2004 No. of posts: 1181 View other posts by Vicar |
Posted: 19 Jun 2008 Damn...I couldn't resist adding a comment...when will I learn? Steve Langham - Chairman 
Surrey Amphibian & Reptile Group (SARG). |
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AGILIS Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 No. of posts: 694  View other posts by AGILIS |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 I am begining to wonder why I hardly see any on the once isolated Suffolk heaths nowdays ,are our dogwalkers the adder bashers ? I remember the days when no dog walkers ventured into isolated heathland now there are permanent tracks in the heather covered in dog s t Almost unbelievable this monday at Tustall heath a car pulled up and out jumped six dogs with their owner all without a lead going berserk in the heather keith
LOCAL ICYNICAL CELTIC ECO WARRIOR AND FAILED DRUID |
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jamiesamson85 Member Joined: 24 Sep 2007 No. of posts: 5 View other posts by jamiesamson85 |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 There are signs dotted all around the Gower warning of adders! Horton is a popular surf spot (when working) and I'm pretty sure there is a sign warning of adders. Infact at Oxwich right next to Horton there is a large infomative sign describing what adders look like and the dangers...what more can be done. However, I do wish the girl a speedy recovering and hope Liz decides not to perpetuate any hysteria. |
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GemmaJF Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 No. of posts: 2090 View other posts by GemmaJF |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 [QUOTE=Vicar]Damn...I couldn't resist adding a comment...when will I learn? [/QUOTE] Tell it how it is Steve Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant |
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Wolfgang Wuster Senior Member Joined: 23 Apr 2003 No. of posts: 326 View other posts by Wolfgang Wuster |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 Apparently, the girl picked it up off the road thinking it was a slow worm, to stop it being run over. Click I hope she is fully OK now, and that the experience won't have affected her attitude to wildlife (but perhaps caused her to brush up on her ID skills) Cheers, Wolfgang Wolfgang Wüster School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales, Bangor http://sbsweb.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/ |
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Peter Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2008 No. of posts: 260 View other posts by Peter |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 That explains a lot, thank you Wolfgang. It`s all happening now then; http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/1518699.stm
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GemmaJF Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 No. of posts: 2090 View other posts by GemmaJF |
Posted: 20 Jun 2008 [QUOTE=Wolfgang Wuster]Apparently, the girl picked it up off the road thinking it was a slow worm, to stop it being run over. [/QUOTE] Awww that is a shame that she got bitten when trying to help out. Hope she is feeling a lot better now. Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant |
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Chris Monk Senior Member Joined: 21 Apr 2004 No. of posts: 157 View other posts by Chris Monk |
Posted: 12 Jul 2008 There was some adder panic up this way last weekend. A group of youths went into a pet/reptile shop to try and sell a snake they claim to have found on the road. One of them had the snake coiled round his arm! The shop staff carefully took it off him and then told them it was an adder after which the youth went rather pale and beat a hasty retreat from the shop. John Newton managed to get over there on Monday and confirmed it was a young female adder, probably 2 or 3 years old. As the urban area where the youths claim to have found it is nowhere near any known site and doesn't look like adder habitat, it was agreed to release it on suitable habitat in the Peak Park after it had spent a week "in care" with John, recovering from its ordeal. Derbyshire Amphibian & Reptile Group www.derbyshirearg.co.uk |
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tim hamlett Senior Member Joined: 17 Dec 2006 No. of posts: 572  View other posts by tim hamlett |
Posted: 12 Jul 2008 makes you wonder how many people get themselves into situations where they might get bitten but don't. bet there's quite a few. tim |
- Adder Hysteria |
It is very tempting to reply but I suspect Liz will moan about whatever she likes regardless of the fact she exists in ignorant bliss of any form of reality, it's a bit of a national disease these days.