How about a Fun Fact?
Well, kinda fun.
They say there are no snakes in Hawaii?
And I thought The Aloha State couldn’t be any more perfect!
But all you ophidiophobes (that’s the fear of snakes), don’t do your happy dance just
yet.
Technically, there are no native snakes… on land.
But there is a local species in Hawaiian waters, and it’s one of the most venomous out there!
Bright yellow and black, Hawaii’s Yellow-Bellied Sea Snake measures about 30 inches long and
swims in the warm coastal waters.
It’s a relative of the cobra, and its venom is extremely potent.
Although it might not hurt that much if it bites and you’ll probably just experience
a little swelling, experts warn that you shouldn’t shrug it off.
Seek medical attention immediately!
Luckily, that’s a big “if.”
Bites from the Yellow-Bellied Sea Snake are so rare that the Waikiki Aquarium couldn’t
find even one report of anybody in Hawaii being bitten by one.
Phew!
And Old Yellow Belly will never bite you on land because, while some sea snakes enjoy
the occasional jaunt out of the water, this one is strictly non-terrestrial.
That means he simply can’t come on land.
And if he does, he can barely move.
His belly is so big and tapered that he can’t slither on the ground!
They might thrash and wiggle to get somewhere, but their bodies are designed for swimming,
not slithering!
Well, that explains it!
But why are there no native land species?
That is, snakes that originate from the Hawaiian Islands – born and bred, if you will.
For one, Hawaii is remote.
It’s an Archipelago (or a group of islands), and it’s a really isolated one.
Anywhere from 2,500 to 5,000 miles of ocean separate Hawaii’s islands from the nearest
landmass.
That’s too far for most animals to travel.
Even the best swimmers can’t swim that far.
This helps explain why Hawaii has such a wonderful variety of birds—about 50 known species.
Unlike snakes, their ancestors could fly!
Once they got to Hawaii, there was no one waiting to gobble them up.
Nice!
Especially no snakes.
Snakes have such an appetite for birds and their eggs that they threaten avian populations
everywhere.
That’s why Hawaiians are incredibly vigilant about keeping out any snakes who try to visit.
Local authorities work hard to capture the ones that’ve somehow made their way into
the state.
And they strongly discourage people from bringing them by making it illegal and heavily enforced!
Hey, how does a $200,000 fine sound?
And that’s not even the worst of it!
It’s easy to understand why a snake would want to come to Hawaii: warm sun, beautiful
beaches, all those birds to eat (not to mention frogs and insects—other snake delicacies.
Yum!).
But these legless reptiles need help getting there.
Since they can’t swim, they hitch a ride on a boat… or a plane!
(No, not just in the movies!)
That, and some people bring them intentionally!
But why would anybody bring one to Hawaii, especially when they threaten the birds and
you can get in big trouble for it?
Well, some people don’t know any better.
They think a snake will make a good pet.
Others might hope that they’ll eat the pesky insects in their gardens— in fact, there’s
a snake in Hawaii that does just that, but we’ll meet him a little later.
And, of course, you always have those knuckleheads who just wanna break the rules.
Tsk tsk!
If only they’d consider how crucial it is to keep snakes out of Hawaii!
Take Guam as an example – invasive snakes devasted the bird population, eating up as
many as 10 of the 12 known avian species there.
That’s over 80%!
It’s heartbreaking, but Guam is working hard to help their birds recover.
But sometimes the person who brought the snake isn’t a criminal – it can happen by accident.
In June of 2019, a 20-year-old man hopped on a plane in Florida and headed to Pukalani,
a nice spot on Hawaii’s island of Maui.
What he didn’t know was that, along with his toothbrush and swimming trunks, his backpack
held a secret hitchhiker: a non-venomous southern black racer!
Well, sometime before take-off, this baby—she was a newborn and only about 6 inches long—slithered
into the man’s backpack.
The stowaway lay low all through the airport security screening and actually made it through
all those detectors!
Then, once she boarded, she kept quiet all through the flight.
No one would’ve ever known about this snake’s journey.
She would’ve grown up to 6 feet in length and probably would’ve filled her gullet
with lots of local birds.
…Had it not been for the observant Hawaiian who owned the place where the man was staying.
When the tourist reached Pukalani, the owner of his vacation rental spotted the baby snake
as she slithered out of the backpack to make her escape.
He called the police, who then alerted The Department of Native Ecosystem Protection
Management.
That’s a mouthful.
And together, they detained the snake overnight.
Until she could be transported to Honolulu (and booked!).
Ok, that was an accident, but what do you do if you live in Hawaii and your Uncle Joe
gives you a snake for your birthday?
(He never was that great at gift-giving!)
You don’t want your uncle to get in trouble for his ill-advised present, but you also
don’t want your birthday gift slithering around eating all the tropical birds!
Plus, you kinda like the scaly little guy.
You’ve already named him: Slim!
There’s no way you’re flushing your friend down the toilet (don’t even think about
it!), but you’re worried how he’ll be treated if you turn him in.
Snakes are banned in Hawaii – you don’t wanna see Slim in handcuffs—he doesn’t
even have hands!
Oh, no!
What do you do?!?
Don’t worry!
The people at Hawaii’s Department of Agriculture have goofy uncles and favorite pets too.
That’s why they have an amnesty program that lets you turn in any snakes you happen
to possess and with no penalty!
They’ll take good care of Slim.
He’s not a bad snake – he’s just in the wrong place.
None of the surrendered snakes are ever harmed.
And when you miss Slim, you might even be able to visit him at the zoo!
If you want further proof that Hawaii doesn’t think all snakes are bad, consider this:
In 2018, the state’s Department of Agriculture invited 4 brown tree snakes to come and live
in Hawaii.
Permanently!
Brown tree snakes pose that exact kind of invasive threat that Hawaiians fear most—like
what happened in Guam.
So why did they deliberately bring four of these guys into the state?
Isn’t it their job to capture them and keep them out?
Yes!
And, since practice makes perfect, these snakes are working hand in hand or … well … together
with the DoA in a big game of “Hide and Seek.”
By hiding and waiting, they help train dogs to sniff them out.
After training, these dogs go to airports and other locations where they sniff out hidden
snakes—like Slim and the backpack baby.
Cool!
But… other than stowaways and contraband visitors, there really are no snakes in Hawaii,
right?
Wrong again.
There’s one snake that’s so common, your chances of seeing him are pretty high.
Well, if that’s true—and everybody sees this one kind of snake—how come the myth
that there are no snakes in Hawaii persists?
Because… these guys are so tiny that most people mistake them for worms!
Snakeologists – ok, they’re really called herpetologists, but you know what I mean – think
that The Hawaiian Blind Snake probably came from the Philippines sometime in the 1930s.
That’s almost a hundred years, so they’ve had plenty of time to spread around.
They’re all over Hawaii today.
These guys are only 6 inches long, they’re super skinny, and they eat stuff like ants
and termites.
So, you often find them in gardens.
And it’s no wonder people mistake them for worms!
But you won’t now!
Look closely, and you’ll see that they have a nifty little snake tongue!
Oh yeah, like their name implies, they’re almost blind, but they can recognize light.
Also, they’re not venomous, so no danger here!
Hawaiian Blind Snakes are cool, but, technically, not native Hawaiians.
So you could still make a case for there being no snakes in the island state… as long as
you ignore everything I just told you!
So really -- what’s your chances of seeing a snake in Hawaii now?
—(wait for it) – Slim to none.
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