It should not be denied that, in addition to the lack of studies related to local wilderness, such as the Magliophis stahli and exiguus, In the case of snakes, snakes are generally socially disliked, causing some individuals to be killed by terrified people and their habitats to be poisoned or destroyed.
Chilabothrus inornatus (Boa de Puerto Rico) Photo taken by PSPR
“Nobody likes snakes, and almost everyone chooses to kill them. That behavior has changed a little, because yes, certain education programs have been developed, but with the reports of the Puerto Rican boa, perhaps people have become a little afraid,” explained the president of Proyecto Serpientes en Puerto Rico (PSPR), Adolfo Rodríguez Velázquez.
Although individuals who kill snakes are generally not penalized, some that are affected have a federal safeguard, such as the Puerto Rican Boa (Chilabothrus inornatus) since, under the system of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), was categorized as “in danger of extinction” from 1970 until its update in 2010. Non-threatened species, such as the M. stahli, the Borikenophis portoricensis and any other snake that has not been categorized under the critical level, only count on the safeguard of the Law 154 of 2008, as amended, the Law for the Protection and Welfare of Animals.
Is our fear by nature or propaganda?
“The fear of snakes has certain disjunctions, many scholars have not yet reached a consensus on why people are so afraid of reptiles, but there are some established hypotheses and there are already some paths traced. For example, it is said that evolutionarily we developed the fear of snakes, because at a certain point, the venom can represent a danger to humans and in the same way there are certain species that prey on primates and can prey on humans”, he mentioned.
Added to this are sociocultural factors, religion and cinematography. For, many mythological tales of ancient cultures, such as the Greek, often present the reptile as a monster or adversary with examples such as Medusa and the Hydra of Lerna. In religious terms, in Christianity, in the book of Genesis, it was a serpent that tempted Adam and Eve to commit the first sin. Similarly, there are countless movies that portray these animals as cruel and violent.
“Everyone has seen the Anaconda (1997) and they think snakes are that giant and that one of these can come out of anywhere,” he said.
Lack of charisma compared to the Coquí
Eleutherodactylus coqui (Coquí Común) Photo taken by Roberto Lee Cortés
“Many people don't see its importance, or perhaps they don't think that snakes are significant. For that reason, they are not being given the space they deserve. The coqui, in spite of being an amphibian, perhaps people don't look at it very favorably, however, it represents us. Because its song is exclusive of here, although it can live in other places”, he declared.
Unlike snakes, the coquí has been “romanticized” and turned into “a Puerto Rican emblem” because of its song. And, in fact, unlike snakes, it has a less threatening appearance because of its “huge eyes,” round figure and diminutive size.
“It's romanticized all that in history, and it's already a charismatic species. Snakes, on the other hand, have not. This has led, perhaps, to the fact that many species of snakes in the world are endangered,” he concluded.
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