Learn how to help wild snakes, including when to call for help, and when to leave them alone on World Snake Day!

Each year on July 16th, wildlife enthusiasts, educators, and advocates celebrate a special holiday – World Snake Day. The exact origins of this holiday are difficult to know for sure, but the overall messages are clear. Despite facing many of the same threats that affect other wildlife species – habitat loss and degradation, global climate change, human activity, etc. – negative attitudes and misinformed public perceptions often make conservation efforts difficult.

 To celebrate this holiday, Center educators are hosting a live-streaming virtual discussion with several snake-expert guest speakers, encouraging the public to learn about native snakes (including directions for identifying venomous vs non-venomous species) by reading their recently posted News Article: Celebrating World Snake Day 2022, and sharing simple snake-related Do’s and Do Not’s.

Our special guests for the program will be Dr. Chris Jenkins, co-founder of the Orianne Society and one of the leaders in snake conservation, and Bonnie Keller, a lifelong snake advocate and co-owner of K2C Wildlife Encounters who recently trained several of the Center’s staff members on venomous snake handling. Alex, the Center’s Public Affairs Manager, will host the discussion and will field questions from viewers at the end of the program. Be sure to tune in, and don’t forget to have your snake questions ready!