Southern states see an increase in snakebites

Snakebites are on the rise in North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas, with the increase linked to climate change and expanding suburbs.

Venomous snakebites are up by more than 10 percent from 2018 in North Carolina and Georgia, The Wall Street Journal reports, while in Texas, there were 415 reported snakebites in May and June — up 27 percent from the same period five years ago. Experts say this could be a record-setting year for snakebites in those states, and most are in rapidly-developing suburbs where new neighborhoods are going up in what was once farmland. Most of the bites are from copperheads.

A 2018 study by Grant Lipman, an emergency room doctor at Stanford University, found that there is a decrease in snakebites following a drought and an increase after heavy rain, for reasons that are not entirely clear. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said last winter was the wettest ever recorded in the U.S., with 9.01 inches of precipitation; experts say this heavy rainfall was linked to climate change.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that every year, 7,000 to 8,000 people in the United States are bitten by snakes, with about five dying. To stay safe, experts say always wear shoes outside, clear piles of leaves, and use flashlights when outside at night.