RE: Q&A with Mark O'Shea       
Anonymous post on November 20, 2002       

I'd buy the DVD's      

Questions from Mark O'Shea about DVDs or videos.

Would it be financially viable for the broadcaster to produce and sell DVDs or videos of Big Adventure or is the interest market too limited ie. herp fans only ? Would sale of DVDs or videos lead to fewer people watching the shows when they are transmitted by the broadcaster?

Both are natural fears for a company which would have to be addressed before they considered releasing their products for sale. I know what I believe but what do visitors to www.venomousreptiles.org think?

Mark

 
RE: Q&A with Mark O'Shea      
by blade2108 on December 7, 2002  
Nice artice - re southernemma , and John Foden, I have met you mark at the safari park and spoken to you on quite a few occasions, keep up the good work and like John I have found you allways willing to help, I too had spent many an hour with john who i found to be an inspiration which you carry on in his tradition.


All the best

Gez     

Dear Gez,

Thank you for your kind words, John Foden was a very good friend of mine also and when I was a young lad with a sick dice snake (Natrix tessellata) he found time to advise me on a suitable course of action. I never forgot that. John was extremely well respected in the UK, he was the Curator of Drayton Manor Zoo and his particular interests (venomous snakes esp. king cobras, Scottish wildcats and wolf-dog hybrids) are well illustrated in the fantastic limited edition print by Tell Hicks (I guarantee YOU have one of his stunning designs on a black ECO t-shirt). Sadly John passed away a couple of years back, after a long fight against lymphatic cancer, and his funeral was standing room only. We have lost some leading lights in the UK herp world in the last few years, names too numerous to mention but every UK herper knows one or two of them.

Mark

 
RE: Q&A with Mark O'Shea      
by cec on December 8, 2002
What is the most venomous snake in the world as defined by the least amount of venom to produce the fastest death in an average size adult human in good health?

Gila monsters seem to use very little venom to produce lethal consequences in comparison to even the most deadly snake. What do you think?

Cec,

It is very hard to determine lethality in snakes. There are many different venoms that function in hugely different ways, it is like comparing apples, with bananas, with tennis rackets - well not quite but I think you get the picture, neurotoxins, haemotoxins, cytotoxins, myotoxins, cardiotoxins etc.

The usual method is the LD50 test where groups of mice are injected with certain controlled amounts of venom. The concentration that kills 50% of the mice is the LD50 so the more venomous the snake, the lower the number. Taking figures from Mirtschin & Davis Dangerous  Snakes of Australia (1982) for highly venomous snakes for instance:

Australian taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus scutellatus) = 0.064

Common or Eastern brownsnake (Pseudonaja textilis textilis) = 0.040

Inland taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus) = 0.010

It takes less inland taipan venom to kill 50% of the control group of mice than it does venom of any other dangerous Australian snake so this snake is considered more venomous. On land it is generally believed that the inland taipan is the world's most venomous snake BUT what about some of the seasnakes, esp. those whose venom has not been studied.

AND there are problems with the LD50 test some of which I will highlight below.

a) Are the tests conducted in a standard way and the results arrived at in the same manner in different laboratories. Those above at CSL (Commonwealth Serum Laboratory, Melbourne, results and are standard but what about those  for cobras elsewhere). Also you get vastly different results depending on whether the venom was injected in the the mice im (intramuscularly - into muscle), iv (intravenously - into the blood supply), sc (subcutaneously - under the skin) or ip (intraperitoneally - into the gut).

b) Animals often  react in different ways to different venoms. Consider that funnel-web spider antivenom is raised on rabbits because dogs and horses are unaffected by their bites and do not produce antibodies. Unfortunately people are vulnerable to funnel-web spider bites so a/v is needed and one animal that is affected by the venom is the rabbit. If different animal species react differently to different venoms how can we consider that an LD50 for snake venom, determined using mice, is relevant to man? All that happens is that the lethal dose for 15gm mice is extrapolated to the weight of a human but many of you weight a lot more than I do! And who is to say it is that simple anyway. Fact is, without human volunteers you can probably never obtain a true human LD50, so mice it is then.

c) Different populations, even different ages of some species of snakes, possess different venom compositions, hence the problems in Sri Lanka with Russell's viper (Daboia russelii). Different people may react in different ways, snakes may inject lethal or sub-lethal doses of venom, or even dry bite, in different parts of the anatomy. There are so many factors it is probably safe to say no two bites will ever be the same.

d) Some of the world's technically most venomous snakes, inland taipan, some seasnakes, only occur in areas far removed from man so often the only bites are to people who deliberately go looking for them, you and me in other words. I believe there have been four bites from inland taipan reported, all to herpers and all surviving, due to prompt and efficient, spare-no-expenses, medical care. Compare and contrast that with the situation in some tropical countries. Australia may have SOME of the world's most venomous snakes but with an annual death toll to snakebite of 2-4 persons it is small league, although in 1995 I think some 8 persons died. Around the world in the 1950's it was estimated some 40,000-100,000 people died of snakebite. The figures may have decreased by now (or maybe not due to people moving into high risk areas such as northern Sri Lanka 30 years ago - see Venom, or the decline in antivenom production by many drug companies). It is estimated that around the world thousands of people die from snakebite each year with the top four countries being Sri Lanka, India, Burma and Nigeria and major culprits being Russell's viper, kraits (Bungarus spp.), common cobras (Naja spp.) and W.African carpet viper (Echis ocellatus). Even  if as many as 100,000 people died from snakebite it would still be a small number compared to the 2,000,000 killed by malaria, a killer again on the increase, but it is still a high death toll and does not take into consideration the large number of people bitten by snakes with venoms that cause limb deformity or loss, often the family breadwinner who is now a helpless cripple and a further burden on a poor family. Snakebite is a terrible thing for survivors too.

Mark

 
RE: Q&A with Mark O'Shea      
by pegasus on December 9, 2002    
Since I posted the above message (more than once by accident, sorry) I've found out quite a bit for my brother and I have to admit it's been interesting doing so.
I have always been interested in the natural world my-self, especially those animals others dislike, but never considered a job along those lines. People think I'm odd as it is being interested in snakes, lizards etc.
When my brother expressed an interest in becoming a herpetologist I was very pleased for him and have helped find out more.
We are at present making a wildlife area in the garden, the reptiles (and other wildlife)in Britain need a helping hand.

This has also made me consider a job with animal's my-self, particularly those that are not so cute.
Mark'O Shea is a great inspiration to people like my brother and in a way myself too.
Keep up the good work.
Amanda

Thank you Amanda,

Careers with reptiles in the UK are hard to find, as I have said before, but enthusiasm often finds a way of fulfilling desire.

Mark

 
Member Comments: Add A Comment
More Q&A with Mark O'Shea
by boams on July 1, 2003  
I am moving to an area that has A LOT of rattle snakes. Especially this year because we have had a little rain. All my neighbors and pretty much everyone I know kill them. I do not want to kill them but I also don't want them roaming the house or property. I have a four year old, etc. I have a boa and have handled snakes for about 20 years, however I have not handled venomous snakes. I was thinking of getting a hook and a hot box and relocating them. Is it wise and is there a safe way to relocate these rattlers should I come across them on my property. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Get yourself a long Gentle Giant from MidWest (Dana will happily advise I am sure) and use that to safely and gently drop the rattler into a deep plastic trash bin (we call them dustbins over here in the UK, I am sure you know what I mean) with a lid that can be fastened down securely. If the bin is kept in the shade there will be plenty of air for the snake until you can discuss release in a suitable area with the local authorities. A bin labeled "Dangerous Snakes, do not open" is a good idea to prevent someone using it for its original purpose. Also a secure lid is essential incase you take a turning too quickly on your way to the release site and the bin tips over!

Do seek advice from local officials, wildlife officers, herp societies before releasing snakes because in many places putting something into the wrong site is as environmentally damaging as taking something away.

Mark

Starting with venomous at 14 years old 

by zipper on July 4, 2003      

hi, im 14 and i want to start with venomous snakes and i want to be the next jeff gorwin or somthing like that, i looked at books about venomous snakes and which one are hemotoxic or neurotoxic and i read a lot, is ther any classes or camps that can teach me how to handle venomous snakes and stuff like that my age, my email is nonarky@yahoo.com     

I think the gentleman you refer to is Jeff Corwin but I am sure he will not mind you getting his name wrong if you are a fan. However, I am sure he would agree with me that 14 is far to young to start with venomous snakes. Get your experience with nonvenomous snakes and ensure that you live long enough to take over from Jeff, Steve or myself when we retire. Why not contact your local herpetological society and see if you can go into the field with someone older and more experienced around snakes in the wild.

Mark

 
RE: More Q&A with Mark O'Shea 
by ozzy4ever on July 12, 2003     
My name is Malcolm I just turned 12 and I am really interested in snakes , scorpions ,and tarantulas. I go outside every day and look for snakes on the side of the road and move them, but my mom thinks I should not do this because she thinks I will get bit by the venomous snakes I scare off the road. Any suggestions on what to do?    

Your Mom is right Malcolm. If you want to move snakes of the road you should have the right equipment such as tongs (grabs) or snake hooks but again I think 12 is too young to mess with venomous snakes. if you can DEFINITELY identify the snake as harmless such as a ratsnake, kingsnake, gartersnake, then you can move the snake but stay away from venomous snakes. I do not want to dampen the enthusiasm of young herpers, I want to ensure they grow to find careers in herpetology. See my advice to zipper above.

Mark