Learn to identify Arkansas' venomous snakes during a free online workshop set for 6 p.m. Thursday. The presenter is Lori Monday, a regional educator with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.
The workshop will be held via Zoom. Anyone may register for the workshop through the Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center's events page at https://fb.me/e/cRLupVsYL.
"With spring, we have a lot of people who are ready to get out and enjoy some fishing, bird watching and turkey hunting," Monday said. "More than a few will express some fear of running across a venomous snake. We want to give people the tools they need to be safe and more confident in the woods and on the banks of our streams and rivers."
Monday said some of the old standby methods of identifying venomous snakes can mislead people and even put them at unnecessary risk.
"A common misconception is that all venomous snakes have slit or 'cat's eye' pupils," Monday said. "That may be true for rattlesnakes, copperheads and cottonmouths, but the coral snake, which is a venomous snake native to Arkansas, has round pupils. And if you're close enough to tell what kind of pupil they have, you're probably getting too close to the snake."
Monday said other methods, such as looking for a broad head, also fall short of the whole story.
Her program will focus on the six venomous species in Arkansas. Monday will work through each species to help people keep their distance from those that pose a threat.
It is illegal to kill snakes in Arkansas unless they pose an immediate threat to people, pets or property. Most cases of snakebite are the result of people accidentally stepping on an unseen snake, purposefully agitating or trying to kill the snake.