Rising mercury spares none

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Summer affects a wide spectrum of animals. But does summer invite snakes into your homes, seeking moisture and refuge? Social media is abuzz with warnings by snake catchers on the possible ‘intrusion’ of snakes into one’s home. Not necessarily, herpetologists say. If the compound is unkempt with enough cozy spots for snakes to rest, their presence will be detected regardless of the season. Snakes don't unnecessarily enter homes. They come inside compounds only while following a prey, say experts.

“One encounters the snake only while it follows the prey. But when the summers arrive, the amphibians may find it difficult to beat the heat. You can see amphibians inside your homes, even as early as September. They are highly dependent on moisture and when they cannot handle the heat, they might enter the homes in search of moisture. Amphibians and snakes are cold-blooded animals and they cannot adjust their body temperature like we do. So they choose a direct source of moisture, for thermoregulation, moving into humid and wet areas. With most preys coming in search of wet, moist areas, the snakes also come, following their prey. If we go by this proposed theory by snake catchers, then the sight of snakes near water-bodies should be common,” says Sandeep Das, herpetologist and PhD research scholar at the Kerala Forest Research Institute.

This is also the breeding season of certain snake species. “Therefore the presence of snakes may be found at a slightly increased rate, with more males arriving, getting attracted by the pheromones released by the female snakes,” he says.“But to exhort that the snakes leave their habitat and move into your compounds during the summer season is pure foolishness,” he adds.