"They don't have any breastbones, so they can squeeze their bodies through amazing spaces," Wallach said. Small snakes, such as the 10-inch troublemaker that caused the recent scare, can wiggle through the tiniest holes, Wallach said.
There is no anti-venom made specifically to counter the ill effects of a bush viper's bite because the wounds are not known to be fatal, Wallach said. The swelling and discoloration on his hand eventually spread to his arm, chest and stomach, lasting for about a month. One such bite that Wallach suffered, which blasted him with an unusually large dose of venom, caused him to become delirious for three days. "There's a burning sensation that's immediate." "They're very painful at first - it's excruciating pain," Wallach said. To an adult, it would be like suffering several bee stings," said Van Wallach, a curatorial assistant with Harvard University's Museum of Comparative Zoology. "A bush viper would only be dangerous, I would say, to a small child. The African bush viper's bite is not deadly, but can be extremely painful, said one expert who has been bitten by such snakes four times. It frequently climbs trees and sleeps.īut finding the snake near the light fixture up in the ceiling "was a surprise," Whittaker said. The African bush viper, which is light green, blends in well with trees and foliage. Moody Gardens' officials said they initially were confident the snake had not escaped from its enclosure because they found no spaces the animal could have used as an exit. "Part of that will be closing down that area to the public while we do that process." "I think that stepping up our speed at which we completely tear an exhibit apart to find the animal is going to change," Whittaker said. However, Moody Gardens said it will respond more aggressively if a venomous snake ever vanishes again. Staff likely faced the biggest risk when they combed through the exhibit looking for the snake, Whittaker said. 1 thing to us," said general manager John Zendt. "Employee safety and guest safety is the No. Managers were reluctant to say Wednesday whether the snake's jaunt outside its tank actually posed any risk to Moody Gardens' visitors. Moody Gardens officials did not contact the Chronicle to offer the correct version of how the snake was discovered because they did not think it was important, animal husbandry manager Greg Whittaker said. She said she just wanted to assure the public the snake had been recaptured. Hamachek said Wednesday that she was unaware at the time of the interview that the snake was found outside its enclosure in an area with no foliage where it could not camouflage itself. The Chronicle confronted managers and Hamachek after receiving a tip that the initial explanation was incorrect. "Snakes camouflage, and that's what he was doing," Hamachek told the newspaper on July 9. Spokeswoman Jerri Hamachek told the Houston Chronicle three weeks ago that the snake never ventured outside its "exhibit" and never posed any danger to the public, but said nothing about the snake going up into the ceiling.
The revelation contradicted Moody Gardens' previous explanations for the incident. They say they still have no idea how the snake got out of the enclosure and up into the ceiling. It settled on a metal screen in the ceiling beside a grated light fixture above its enclosure, managers said Wednesday.
The 10-inch African bush viper was later found lying on top of the tank.
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