Poisonous Viper: Okinawa Habu

Found Throughout Okinawa Islands

This character was spotted on a road between some tobacco fields on Miyagi Island.

They are venomous snakes, that eat rodents and birds, not particularly people.

Most of he time, they'll shy away from humans, unless they are provoked. 

Normally, they won't pose for a camera, to get this close for photos.

Vehicular homicide seems to have been performed on the rascal.

To show approximately, how long the snake was, I used a size 12 flip-flop.

Just guessing, I'd say it would be four or five feet long. I didn't want to stretch my luck.

In case there was any life left in the dude, I didn't feel like getting bit.

Don't Mess with These Snakes

 

This species is the largest and most poisonous one on the island.

Great images and descriptions of others can be seen a Shawn Miller's website.

If, you get bitten by one chances are good, you'll survive if, medical attention is speedy.

Don't do like the cowboys and, try to suck the poison out of the wound.

Stay calm, keep the area clean, elevated and, get your fanny to a hospital.

A few of my friends, have been bitten, surviving the ordeal even though, it was painful.

More about the habu, is provided by Camp Lester Naval Hospital. 

Another interesting thing, you may want to know about the snakes, occurred to me. 

Way before Viagra was invented, Okinawans, created Habu Sake.

The snake come in a big glass jar of, what locals call, awamori.

If, you're having trouble, impressing the ladies, with your super powers, drink some.

Then, come back here and, let us all know, how things turned out !

Sashiba (サシバ) Grey-faced Buzzard Eagle - A Mirgatory Visitor

These Birds Leave Our Island Soon

 

 

Normally, our feathered friends visit from November through March.

Then, they head back up to northern climates in China, Japan and Russia.

Luckily, we spotted this guy perched in a tree, while it was raining.

The farthest, I could reach, with the lens being used, was 250MM.

The bird probably, didn't feel like flying and, getting its wings all wet.

So, I snapped a few good shots before he got riled and flew away.

Any bird that eats mice, snakes and rats, as well as bugs, has to be a favorite of mine.

It's too bad, they migrate away from here during the warmer months. 

Another thing, I hear these birds eat, is frogs and, that upsets some folks.

Well, people eat frogs, too.  Don't they ?  They shouldn't complain about birds, doing it then.

Try this sometime, when you go to a French restaurant.

Ask the waiter if, he has frog legs.  Then if, he says,  "Yes, of course," have some fun with him.

Say something like, "Great.  Hop in to the kitchen and get me a plate of French Fries."

More About the Grey-faced Buzzard Eagle (Butastur indicus) in previous posts.

Revisiting Okawa Spring Looking for Caves and Snakes

From the 2014 Photo Files

 

 

Working on a story that includes a cave, pretty women and a serpent, got me doing this.

It took some digging and switching of external hard drives to locate Okawa Spring.

It looks like, I hadn't taken any photos of this place, since May of last year.

This afternoon, I just walked down there with a camera and left the tripod in the office. 

A couple of images were composed and Geo-tagged but, the story isn't complete, yet.

The caves were easy to find and, there are plenty of pretty girls around here.

It's just, the snake wasn't ready to come out for my photo shoot.

Camera: Pentax KD10

Lens: Pentax 18-250 at 18mm

Exposure: f/19  30sec   ISO 100

Location: Okawa Spring, Namisato, Kin Town, Okinawa, Japan

Date and Time: May 23 2014 8:01PM

Wildlife of Okinawa: Habu a Venomous Snake

A sign was photographed to record the Latin name.

There are a few different types of these snakes but, they are all poisonous.

Generally speaking, those with triangular-shaped heads are dangerous.

Okinawa World has a Habu Museum where you can visit the snakes.

The ones in the GIF above, are outside the building in trees, surrounded by a fence.

In the wilderness these snakes normally, run from you.

If they come after you, they may be the Taiwan version of snake, which are highly aggressive.

If you are bitten by a habu, you probably won't die from the bite.

Do not try and imitate cowboys and, suck the poison out of the wound.

Clean it, keep the bitten part below the level of the heart and, get medical attention.

Protobothrops flavoviridis

Mongooses or Mongeese ?

Check These Varmints Out

 

 

When you spot one of these Mongoose critters, it is usually by itself.

And, they normally disappear quickly.

These two were captured digitally, along the bank of the Okukubi river.

Just guessing, I'd say, it was probably a mother and son.

A split second earlier, I saw the number two mongoose, slip and fall into the river.

That's when, I decided, it might be a good idea, to shoot them.

The first mongoose turned around and, made sure the little one got to the top of the wall.

Only a mother, would do something like that.

A father wouldn't have bothered to wait, because that's just the way dudes are.

When you're running for your life, it's supposed to be...

EVERYMAN FOR HIMSELF!

Research on the Mongoose in Okinawa

 

 

There are plenty of photos and links on these critters in my files, already.

And, I blogged about encounters with this invasive species, in the past.

It's always a good idea, to see if anything has been written about them recently.

That's how I came across a few items, I had never known about the mongoose.

The professor who introduced these weasel-looking things to Okinawa:

Shozaburo Watase

He came up with the original brainstorm of bringing the mongoose to the Ryukyu Islands.

That was because he saw a mongoose and snake fight, in a cage.

And, the mongoose won.

He had 17 mongooses brought to Okinawa in 1910.

The plan was to use the animals for getting rid of the poisonous habu snakes.

Being natural enemies, the mongoose would kill all the snakes.

Biological pesticide is what they called it.

Only, DUH Professor didn't exactly take his research far enough.

The mongoose, in nature, is a daylight sort of critter.

The habu is active at night.

The original population of 17 mongooses, expanded to something like 30,000.

And, they go around eating things like the endangered Yanbaru Kuina.

Time for a Quote

From an excellent article concerning the mongoose problem we have this:

"Ten years after the release of the mongoose in Okinawa, one agricultural officer, Kyukichi Kishida, published a cautionary essay in an academic journal, saying that mongoose might not be a perfect solution for Okinawa, citing the case of mongoose being introduced in the West Indies to hunt rats but also eating poultry. Later, he rescinded his article with the deepest apology, says Ogura. "This can explain the dominating of the environment of academic circles back then, he adds."

Now, I've heard of government coverups and some corporate ones, as well.

Academics, can do that kinda stuff, too?

 Mongoose in a Birdcage

 

A good old grandpa, in Ginowan caught a mongoose and kept it in a cage.

The darn things were eating his chickens' eggs.

 

His grandson likes the furry animals so, gramps kept it alive for the kid.

What a nice guy.

But, one night, he got a surprise.

A habu snake came into his house and decided to swallow the mongoose.

Grandpa came along and made the snake, puke the mongoose loose.

Don't you just love happy endings?

This was brought to you by the Ryukyu Shimpo.

Mongoose and Snake Fights

 

 

 

The used to have these demonstrations at tourist attractions.

A few years ago, they were banned.

The snakes' rights movement or, animal activists had the entertainment put to an end.

From a friend, Tom Corrao, a video of what takes place these days:

 

To Pluralize the Word Mongoose

 

 

Mongooses, sounds correct, to me.

But, I went and did a search, just to be sure and, got this surprise.

Merriam-Webster, also, an Encyclopedia Britannica Company says:

Mongoose, noun

Plural,  mongooses     Also,  mongeese

Here's what I think:  We should eradicate all the mongeese in the Okinawa Islands.











RELATED POSTS:

Mongoose: Never Knew She was Pregnant When I Shot Her

Wildlife Photo: Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus) Okinawa, Japan

Photo Fun in the Mountains of Okinawa, Japan

Okinawa Flower Photos: Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea)

These purple flowers originated somewhere in Africa.

Called, Society Garlic, Wild Garlic or, Pink Agapanthus, they are really related to onions.

The plants were granted the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

What that means, I think, is they are easy to take care of, if you are a lazy gardener.

Rub crushed leaves and flowers on your skin and, it will repel fleas, ticks and mosquitoes.

The Zulus use it for all kinds of stuff, like, seasonings and snake repellent.

And, they figured out a way to make aphrodisiacs from it.

How wild is that ?



Wildlife Photo: Striated Heron (Butorides striata)

This bird had me stumped for awhile but, we gotterdun.

It's a Striated Heron, sometimes called Little Heron (Butorides striata).

They eat fish, bugs, frogs, snakes and when they're really hungry, other birds.

Learn more about them at ARKIVE 

 Whenever I get stuck trying to identify wildlife I post a few photos in the ID Forums at

BIRDFORUM

They have experts on everything, not just birds.

You can find snakes, turtles, bats, butterflies, trees, flowers and plants over there.

So what are you waiting for ?

Visit my website for today's Feature Photo 

Wildlife Photo: Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus) Okinawa, Japan

A classic example of man fooling with nature and regretting it, the Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus) was brought to Okinawa from India in the 1900s to control the poisonous snakes, Habu.

A mongoose will kill a habu, no doubt about it. I've seen it with my own eyes, even seen them kill larger snakes, like cobras. The shows that used to be put on for tourists to watch the event in a controlled environment have been banned but, you can still go some places and catch it on video.

As you can see from my photo, these little weasel-looking guys hang around in broad daylight. The snakes they were brought here to eliminate are nocturnal dudes, wouldn't you know.

So, instead of eliminating the snakes our little mongoose friends eat frogs and birds and their eggs. I hear Hawaii has the same sort of problem. A moongoose will pull raids on a chickencoop.

We have mongooses (mongeese, if you prefer) eating endangered species and the knuckleheads  who came up with this brainstorm are calling the mongoose an invasive species. Hah !

Now these poor critters got a bad reputation. They even have a bounty on them like they're some sort of criminals. BRING THEM IN DEAD OR ALIVE. LET'S STRING THEM UP !

Has it ever occurred to you, maybe the dingbat humans who snatch a critter out of his wildlife environment and stick him where he ain't supposed to be, might be the invasive species ?

The people who came up with the idea of bringing the mongoose (Herpestes javanicus) to Okinawa to eat snakes are the real VARMINTS, HERE. LET'S GO AFTER THEM !

We won't string them up and we don't want them dead. Bring them here ALIVE AND MAKE THEM ROUND UP THE INVASIVE SPECIES AND TAKE THEM BACK WHERE THEY CAME FROM !

Snakes in a Tree

Sometimes Ya Feel Like A Nut

SOMEBODY'S GOTTA CONTROL THESE SNAKES

It's another one of those days where I just don't feel like composing a long post and worrying about all the stuff the experts say ya gotta do on a blog.

I found this photo of me on my cell-phone and emailed it to myself so I could share it with you.

It's from one of those days I felt like a nut and had an accomplice snap the shot of me.

Yup, that's me. I'm a little more scrawny than what the picture shows. In fact, I just noticed:

THERE'S THREE HANDS IN THE PICTURE !

Maybe four hands, if ya look real close. Anyway, the skinny little hand in the lower part of the frame, that'd be mine. When I squatted down behind the cutout to stick my handsome face in there for the picture and my knees groaned and cracked, I didn't want to fall over so I had to hang on to something.

They have these hilarious things you can pose behind at lots of tourist traps in Japan. So, if you're into photography, don't let a rainy or cloudy day ruin your photographic experience. Hunt some of these cutouts down and get someone to act like a nut and pose for you.

Maybe, I'll start making a collection of them. I'll try and get some better looking models.

UNLESS NOBODY'S AVAILABLE OR I FEEL LIKE A NUT AGAIN !