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[brother]

Snake buster - If you are worried by snakes, repel them with a new product rather than trying to kill them
By Jill Campbell Mackay


PEOPLE are not born with an innate fear of snakes, we are taught at an early age that they can be dangerous, although there is no logical reason to have an extreme dread of snakes.

In Cyprus you are 1,000 times more likely to die in a road accident than from a snake bite and worldwide more people die from bee stings. With our almost relentless building projects, it is man that has a far greater impact on snakes than vice cersa.

These days, it’s more likely that the snake lounging on your patio has been usurped from its normal environment and is on the look out for a comfortable replacement home.

So what does one do when faced with a blunt nosed viper as an unwelcome visitor? The first thing most would do is to reach for a brick or pour out the Lanate and kill the creature. Many will even aim their vehicles at snakes who have decided to sunbath by the side of a busy road.

To the majority of people the only good snake is a dead snake. Yet the snake, like every other organism, plays an important part in nature so we should never kill them, we simply need to keep them away so they are not a pest or a danger to us.

Hans-Jorg Wiedl, or Snake George, knows only too well the problems both snakes and humans have with each other and his aim is to endeavour to get both parties to live together in a more harmonious manner. With this in mind he has, over the last year, worked with a British scientist to develop a powerful snake repellent that is non toxic called Snake Buster.

This is a wholly natural repellent and does not harm either snakes or household pets, and, like most repellents, it works on the principle of inhibiting the animal’s sensory perception. With snakes for instance, the repellent literally “shuts the light off”. It doesn’t kill them, but it’s akin to a human being forced to walk through a room with all the light switched off, and we don’t like that, neither do the snakes.

With one application to garden borders, entranceways, garages, wood piles, sheds, playgrounds, edges of swimming pools, George has now proved that this can repel a blunt nosed viper and all other Cyprus snakes for up to a period of up to eight weeks.

The key message is ‘Live and let live, and to do so with effective repellents not poisons’.

n Snake Buster costs £12.50 for one litre of repellent and can be sent islandwide via Akis Express for those unable to buy direct from his Reptile Park in Peyia. Call 99 987685 or 26 938160



Sounds like an excellent product and i will eventually be stocking up on this BIG time, i really hate snakes

[Marina2005]

Thanks for that Bro!

Its good to know something like that is for sale in Cyprus, you never know ene!!

[devil]

I fully concur that one should never kill snakes nor allow cats to do so.

The only potentially dangerous species to man here is the blunt-nosed viper, which is front-fanged. However, it is very useful in controlling the balance of nature and, especially, reducing drastically the numbers of rats and mice (much more effective than cats, BTW). The other venomous snakes are both back-fanged colubridae and are harmless to man unless you stick a finger in their mouths! The commonest and most visible snake is the black whip snake, which is also the largest (up to 3 m long!). It is harmless to man and his pets. They should be encouraged near houses, because their presence will prevent too many vipers electing domicile. One of their favourite foods is the young of the viper, so they control the numbers of the latter. If badly handled they can bite but they have no venom. Like many snakes, they can also void their guts, a noisome process!

I should also like to point out that ALL reptiles (8 species of snakes, 4 of lizards, 2 of geckos, 1 of chameleons, 2 of turtles) and amphibians (tree frog and green toad) are highly protected species in Cyprus. It is therefore a crime to kill one. If you find a viper (recognisable by broad triangular head, stout body and short tail, up to ~ 1 m long) where you don't want it, then call a game warden or policeman, rather than risk being bitten yourself by inexperience in snake handling. Any other snake may be left alone, because it will be harmless. If you do call someone, keep an eye on where the snake goes from a respectful distance, as they can move a goodly distance before help arrives.

The black whip snake is also a good tree climber: it delights in eggs and young birds. Legend has it that it can coil itself round a stone and unleash itself when danger approaches, catapulting the stone a few metres with uncanny accuracy towards the eyes of the intruder. I have heard this many times, but have never seen any proof of it.

Finally, always remember that the snake (all species) is inevitably more afraid of you than you are of them. They will scarper away from you long before you see them. Do not try to corner a viper; it will react hostilely. The danger is accidentally treading on one, especially in cooler weather, when they are more lethargic. To the best of my knowledge, I can recollect only one case of snake bite in the last 6 or 7 years. A young English kid picked up a viper in Pano Lefkara and was very seriously bitten, but he survived. As Bro said, more people die from bee stings than snake bites and this applies to Cyprus as well.


Blunt nosed viper


This is a Western whip snake, very similar in appearance to our Black whip snake (not able to find a photo, offhand)

[hincyprus]

good info devil thank you very much.....

such a pity that my local Cypriot neighbours take great pleasure in actually killing the Whip snake even though I tell them that it helps control the Viper.......

maybe one day they will believe me .

Nice piece thanks

H

[2fan]

good info devil thank you very much.....

such a pity that my local Cypriot neighbours take great pleasure in actually killing the Whip snake even though I tell them that it helps control the Viper.......

maybe one day they will believe me .

Nice piece thanks

H

Humans are afraid of what they do not know or understand. Nice piece brother.

I wonder if you made the corrolation by chance or on purpose.

[Svetlana]

I have had (Cypriot) neighbours who put out milk for Whip snakes, as their presence discourages vermin.

It is fascinating if you see them crossing a road, sidewinder style, as soon as they get to the grass on the other side, they accelerate like crazy.



Lana < Thinks, might make a nice handbag though >

[hincyprus]

Lana < Thinks, might make a nice handbag though >[/quote]







typical woman..........the viper would look better though. Much nicer pattern.

H

[devil]

good info devil thank you very much.....

such a pity that my local Cypriot neighbours take great pleasure in actually killing the Whip snake even though I tell them that it helps control the Viper.......

maybe one day they will believe me .

Nice piece thanks

H

Tell your neighbours that if they kill a snake of any species, they are committing a criminal act. If I remember correctly, the punishment is a fine of up to £5,000 and/or 6 months prison.

[hincyprus]

hi Devil,

I wonder would that really stop them........One guy starved a dog to death recently (last week) and the police and the Gov. Vet Depr did f......k all.

Maybe one day !!!!!

Not that the UK is much better from recent reports.

H

[rulla]

HI DEVIL
yes well id like to say its very good advice!but calling the police? they dont turn up for things they should let alone snakes.if you come across a snake just tell it not to bite you while you call someone to help you im sure it will comply with your wishes.