Villagers fear return of snakes

With the impending arrival of summer, Nora Nalisa of Sibulamunda village in the Katima Mulilo Rural constituency is worrying about the snakes that will soon begin to torment her again.

The area is lush and home to a variety of wildlife, including snakes.

“Immediately when it gets warm around the end of August and beginning of September the snakes visit us a lot,” Nalisa says.
Sibulamunda village is situated within the Silambala conservancy.

“The other season a python sailed for almost 5km from wherever it came from. We killed it. When it is warm, we are visited by different types of snakes,” she says.

Nalisa says snakebites often occur in the conservancy, with some proving fatal.

“A herd boy was bitten at night last season, but he recovered, because he was taken to hospital quickly,” she says.

Apart from attacking humans, snakes also target chickens and smallstock.

To defend herself against snake encounters, Nalisa says she relies on her faith in God and her cats.

“There is nothing we use. When we come across them we kill them. In most cases they move at night. We find them in the morning, and sometimes the cats kill them,” she says.

Nalisa says sulphur powder is ineffective, as snakes easily crawl over it.

She says while the conservancy’s management is aware of the issue, the community has been told to coexist with the snakes.

“They tell us this is the snakes’ village and we have to make peace with that. They are not helping us. How can you make peace with a snake?” she asks.

She appeals to the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism to provide training on snake capture and their safe release into the wild.

Ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda says the ministry is aware of the snake problem in the area.

He says when officials respond to calls, however, they do not always find the snakes.

“Snakes may be breeding in the area. We will, to this effect, assess the situation. A team has been assigned to study the extent of the problem and to inform our next step,” he says.

Muyunda says the Sibulamunda village case is unique, as recurring incidents of snakes being spotted is not common.
Constituency councillor Warden Simushi said he was unaware of the situation.

The community’s only resource is Ingo Sagell, a snake catcher based at Katima Mulilo, approximately 60km from the village.

“Snakes are misunderstood. They are not out to kill people. They are just out looking for food. If a homestead is not clean, they go there because there could be mice,’’ he says.

Sagell travels long distances to assist the village, offering his services for free.

He says the snakes he catches are released in his garden, while venomous species are taken to Hippo Island, and protected pythons are transported to national parks.