venom being injected. Of the remainder, 19%
issued a ‘partial’ warning, with the forebody closer
to the ground. The scientists estimated that 25% of
strikes were bluff and that the snakes were reluctant
to deliver meaningful bites even with continuous
provocation. Possibly less that 15% of strikes had
the potential to cause serious envenomation.
Public surveys, awash with claims of aggression
and attacks, were at odds with the researchers’
experiences. Much of this could be attributed to fear
and lack of knowledge on the part of the locals
surveyed. On more than one occasion at my shows,
I have had people yell at me that ‘Brown snakes will
chase you!’ Apart from the fact that no snake can
effectively chase a running human, my reply is to
ask, ‘Why would a snake chase you when it is afraid
of you and can’t eat you?’ I then demonstrate with a
brown snake by approaching close enough to elicit
a warning from the animal and sometimes have it
actually advance toward me. The moment I retreat
‘The snake chewed savagely on my
wrist. I remained on LIFE
SUPPORT for six days and was
declared CLINICALLY DEAD on
three occasions.’
bite and an initial dose of antivenom was promptly
administered. I was unaware of the next several
hours, and when a nurse in intensive care saw that I
had finally regained consciousness a doctor
promptly attended and explained to me what had
occurred. Despite the fact that I had suffered an
anaphylactic reaction to the test dose of antivenom,
doctors had to give me further doses due to the
amount of venom injected by the chewing bite.
In all I had been declared clinically dead on
three occasions, with doctors restarting my heart
with external cardiac massage and intravenous
treatment with adrenalin and steroids. I was
intubated for oxygen via an endotracheal tube and
hooked up to blood transfusions immediately. At
one stage I had vomited 500 millilitres of bright
blood and my white blood cell count was greatly
elevated due to the destruction of red blood cells. I
remained on life support for six days and the
doctors were totally honest in saying they could not
be sure I would recover. After being taken off life
support I was given heparin intravenously to combat
the postulated widespread thrombopathy and I had
continual 24-hour per day blood transfusions for two
weeks. I was anaemic and weak when I left hospital
the snake invariably changes direction in an attempt
to escape. Another demonstration I always include
in my shows involves me providing a ‘trigger’ move-
ment to stress a brown snake; sometimes this may
even result in a ‘full’ defensive display. Seconds
later, with me standing still, the same snake will
move quietly around my feet with no attempt to bite.
All snakes are individuals, and although generalisa-
tions may be made about certain species, some
specimens may display more vigour in defending
themselves than others. Out of the hundreds of
Eastern Brown Snakes I have encountered, two
stand out as amongst the most difficult snakes I
have ever had to handle.
The first was passed on to me when I was 19 years
old by an older, and at that time, far more experi-
enced snake man, with the statement, ‘This is the
worst snake I have ever handled!’
Of average size, whenever I tailed this snake it
struck continuously at head and chest level, and I
could not count how many close calls I had with it. I
was eventually bitten on the wrist by the snake,
which chewed savagely and left about nine
puncture marks. I had to physically remove the
snake, and then carried out first aid, before attend-
ing St George Hospital at Kogarah in Sydney.
Doctors were horrified by the nature of the chewing
Above: a youthful Neville two days after being bitten
by an Eastern Brown Snake.
Above right: the chewing bite left about nine
puncture marks.
Photos taken by doctors at St George Hospital,
Kogarah, and supplied by Neville Burns.