Why do people fear snakes?

What lives in the pond? With second grade, we usually catch aquatic arthropods, insect larvae, and small fish. Everyone’s excited when we find larger vertebrates. The kids love being able to look at the animals, and the guides have more fun teaching when students are excited.

Banded Water Snake chin and underside

A few weeks ago, this Banded Water Snake swam into one of the fish traps. The species can be distinguished from the venomous Cottonmouth by the bands under the chin and round pupils. In contrast, Cottonmouths have vertical pupils, as well as triangle-shaped heads.

To learn more about identifying these species, see the following links from the University of Florida:

Banded Water Snake and Cottonmouth

Please note, no snakes were harmed in this process. He was released as soon as the kids got to see, and was not handled by children or adults.

Banded water snake with tongue out

Normally, you wouldn’t want to approach a snake this closely to identify it, though. When an animal is potentially venomous, it’s important to keep a safe distance. Keeping your distance can also let you observe the animal longer instead of scaring it away.

Why are people so afraid of snakes? Research suggests a combination of evolutionary biology and social learning. Although we aren’t born with an innate fear of snakes, some research indicates babies are able to identify snakes more quickly than some other potential threats. Therefore, parts of our brains respond differently to snakes.



Although the vast majority of snakes are harmless, the species that pose a threat to humans are often life-threatening. Perhaps this is why we developed a neural response when we see them. This is exacerbated by social conditioning, or the strong reactions of others when we are young.

For more information on why people fear snakes, see these articles from ABC News, National Geographic, and the New York Times.

When people live near venomous snakes, they sometimes kill any species on sight. There are 46 species of snakes in Florida. Only six of these are venomous. The vast majority are harmless and even help humans by controlling pest/rodent populations.

Students hold Candy Corn, a female corn snake and one of our animal ambassadors at Corkscrew

That’s one of the reasons I love being able to show students and families snakes up-close. We never hold wild snakes, of course, but we do have three animal ambassador snakes that help us teach programs. Although plenty of people are afraid at first, they often warm up when they see our education animals. When they touch or hold them, they’re often surprised by how the body and skin feels.

In a state that’s losing habitat to development every day, it’s inevitable that human-wildlife interactions will become more common. It’s imperative to change the rhetoric around these slithering creatures, for their good and for our own.

Banded Water Snake side profile, with tongue out

~AnnaFaith, Education Intern