Where should you release a rescued Russell's Viper?

Last week, a man said during a television interview that his family members were waking up from nightmares about Russell's Viper. And it is not just him, the whole country seems to be in a state of panic about this particular snake. 

This year, around a dozen people have reportedly died from its bite. 

In Bangladesh, there are four lakh cases of snakebite every year, of which 7,511 lead to deaths. So, the reported number of deaths by Russell's Viper is not very high compared to the extreme fear it has instilled among people.  

The panic was largely spread due to the increasing presence of the snake in more than one district. 

Conservationists are of the opinion that social media and news media have exaggerated the situation, which is why the general public is getting scared and hunting down the snake and killing it. 

However, after a few weeks of spreading misinformation, a part of the mainstream media is finally reporting with fact-based stories, interviewing snake experts. 

Now that calm is expected in the following days, a crucial question remains: When a Russel's viper is rescued from an angry mob, where should they be released? What is their safe habitat? 

Russell's Viper is a venomous snake so, obviously it can't be released near human habitats. It can swim well, so releasing it into the water is also not a good idea. 

Professor M Farid Ahsan of the Department of Zoology at Chittagong University is a renowned researcher of Russell's Vipers in Bangladesh. 

He said small bushes and grass forests are the snake's natural habitats. Although they can swim, they prefer dry spaces. 

But Bangladesh is a small country, and we lack dry, bushy areas. That is why the snakes prefer staying in the crop fields.  

In monsoon, when the fields are submerged in water, they migrate to dry land, sometimes to human habitats as well, which is currently  happening. 

Previously, the forest department chose a Padma char in Rajshahi to release the rescued vipers. Although that area is sparsely populated, the question remains: how many can you release in a single spot?  

"It is a bit tough for us, in the context of a small country like ours," Farid Ahsan said. "We cannot release so many snakes in a single place. If there is any such place that is dry, has less people, we can release them there. But the problem is, where is the space in Bangladesh?" 

According to him, the best option now is to handover the snakes to the forest department. 

"Killing the snake is a punishable offence. In fact, when we take a snake for research, we have to take official permission. But on the other hand, many people are also dying of snakebite. In that case, I cannot give you a solution. Bangladesh is not a big country, we don't have enough space. And if it were a forest snake, we could release it back into the forests. But Russell's Viper is not a forest snake," he said. 

Shahadut Hossain, a conservationist working for Deep Ecology and Snake Conservation Foundation, said that the snakes they release are let out in sparsely populated chars in Padma River.

"There is hardly any human habitation where it is being released," he said. 

He added that it is possible that the snakes may have spread to other areas via flood water. But compared to the widespread rumours and panic, there is no proof that they have spread to such an extent. 

Rafiqul Islam Chowdhury, a divisional forest officer at the Forest Department said that Russell's Viper is a marshland snake. 

"Around 20 districts on Padma River banks have been known to have this snake," he said, and hence, he emphasised that the discovery of the snakes in those areas is not an anomaly. 

He advised that people should immediately contact local forest offices if they rescue a viper. The forest officials of different districts coordinate among themselves about releasing a rescued animal back to the wild.

Snake expert Abu Saeed urged caution in terms of rescuing and releasing a venomous snake like Russell's Viper. 

"First of all, the snakes that didn't get inside your house don't need rescuing - let them go. When it comes to non-venomous snake rescue, you can release them far from home. In the case of a Russell's Viper, you have to release it where it lives."  

Abu Saed said that the forest department released some snakes in Char Khidirpur in Rajshahi. Its population is increasing there. There are 50 rescued vipers at the Venom Research Centre of Chattogram Medical College. 

"The rule is to release them in a safe place. If you catch a Russell's Viper and release them near the same place you found them, then it is a problem. You can't release it to Madhupur Shalban either, for example, as it is not its habitat." 

"People live in their habitats, animals in their own habitats.  The animals are coming to our spaces because we are destroying their habitat and the ecological balance," he said. 

He advised raising awareness among villagers, as well as taking more precaution such as putting up net fences around the house, cleaning out the rooms, stop sleeping on the floor, wearing rubber boots while working on the crop field etc.