Why do so many people hate snakes?

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Why do so many people hate snakes? I find that snakes are absolutely beautiful.

FACTS ABOUT SNAKES:

- Snakes are the closest living relatives of mosasaurs.
- The first snakes evolved 94 million years ago, during the age of the dinosaurs.
- They slither around without any legs.
- They swallow food without chewing. Chewing is for sissies.
- Some female snakes give birth to live young instead of laying eggs.
- Some female snakes can give birth without having sex. Perhaps they are impregnated by God.
- They save more people than they kill because they eat rodents.
- They will usually warn you before striking, giving you a chance to get away.
- They believe in liberty! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadsden_flag
- They can unhinge their jaws, allowing them to consume large prey without chewing.
- Some snakes can see infrared radiation using organs called pits.
- In Ancient Minoan religion, snakes were associated with the fertility goddess of the earth.
- In Nordic Mythology, there was a giant serpent named Jörmungandr.
- The Rainbow Serpent is an important character in Australian Aboriginal Mythology.
- Horned serpents often appear in Native American art.
- One of the most important Mesoamerican gods was a feathered serpent god named Quetzalcoatl.
- Cobras were sacred to the Ancient Hindus and the Ancient Egyptians.
- Today, the ball python is sacred to the Igbo people of Nigeria. They will give a ball python a funeral if it dies.
- The largest snake ever was Titanoboa, which lived 59 million years ago in what is now Colombia. It was 14.6 meters long.
- The smallest snakes in the world today are the threadsnakes. They live underground in many parts of the world and they eat burrowing insects.
- The ouroboros is a symbol which appears in many ancient cultures. It depicts a snake eating its own tail. It is an eternal symbol of immortality.

I guess because a small portion of them are poisonous, so they just play it safe and treat them all as killers? I don’t really know either. I don’t have a problem with them, nor do I have a problem with spiders, cockroaches, or any other animals that seem to repulse most other people.

Some wolves are dangerous, but most of us see wolves as majestic nowadays.



The world needs more people like you.


^^^
He saw beauty in dangerous animals too. I miss him so much.

I loved your list of facts about snakes . I learned a whole bunch just reading it.

I used to be quite frightened of snakes since I was a child. In my late teens, I was working at a local fair where the organization "ARK" (Association of Reptile Keepers) had a display. They had corn snakes and small pythons available for people to handle.

I washed my hands and spoke to the ARK members. They discussed the snakes and safety around them. They assured me that their specimens were neither venomous nor aggressive. They thought it wise that I washed my hands (as the snakes have excellent smell and might mistake my thumb for food and bite it quickly, then release when they realize I'm not a small mouse..).

The snakes were very smooth. Even with the small snakes - I could feel the power as they gently constricted around my lower arm. They were very fascinating.

I would still be cautious if I encounter a snake outside of a pet with a responsible owner. We don't really have much in the way of wild snakes here - a few garter snakes and, in the drier part of my province, there are rattlesnakes.

Still - interesting creatures.

They appear in Celtic iconography too - usually a snake with a ram's head. You can see Cernunnos holding one <here>.

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VVV

I don't hate snakes, but I definitely try to keep my distance when one is hissing at me.

I love all sorts of creepy animals, including spiders!

FACT: Although all of these spiders are ugly and spooky, they all have sex.

There's someone out there for everyone I guess.

Spooky snakes!

Coyote Peterson is the most badass person alive.

Evolution probably has a lot to do with it. I've heard that primates are mostly predisposed to fearing snakes, and can recognise them remarkably quickly. There's also said to be a social element, laboratory-reared Rhesus monkeys don't fear snakes, but they seem able to learn it quicker than they learn fear of other objects. It's probably not surprising that hating snakes is in human DNA. I would imagine snakes were one a significant threat to human life.

I agree it's a shame that folks are still so bothered by snakes.

I'm not really afraid of snakes, and yet I had a dream about being attacked by one just the other night.

In Christianity, snakes are commonly seen as being evil and horrible since Eve was tempted by Satan while he was disguised as a serpent. St. Patrick supposedly drove snakes away from Ireland. Some other religions, however, worship snakes.

Even venomous snakes are hardly ever as dangerous as they are made out to be. They use their venom more for killing their prey than they do using it in self-defense. Snakes usually just want to be left alone and avoid humans whenever possible.

Because they don't have cute soft hairs and still leave big dandruffs everywhere.

They're nature's quitters, according to Homer Simpson.

I don't get it either. I've never had any problem with snakes at all, and I fail to see why so many seem repulsed by them.

Is that how most people see wolves? Whenever the wolf debate rages here, I get the impression that a lot of people still buy into the big bad wolf nonsense, including getting all hysterical and not daring go out if a wolf has been seen anywhere near the area. Because you know, wolves are always waiting just around the corner so they can gobble up little Red and grandma and the hunter/ woodsman as well. And sadly these tend to have the politicians' ear.

A few years ago I met an albino python named Butter, who was sort of the mascot of a park for reptiles. He must have been a *very* tame snake, because little kids were allowed to have their picture taken with him. I had my picture taken with him as well. It was so cool. They were selling t-shirts with the phrase "Squeezed by Butter".

Sadly, he died only a couple of years after that. I guess he helped a lot of people see that snakes can be lovable. I still have the photo.