Sleeping with snakes at Musambwa
Jan 25, 2008
Within an area of five acres and a population of less than 100 people, Musambwa Island on Lake Victoria has more than 2,000 snakes, a ratio of over 20 snakes per person.
By Gerald Tenywa
Within an area of five acres and a population of less than 100 people, Musambwa Island on Lake Victoria has more than 2,000 snakes, a ratio of over 20 snakes per person.
Residents of the island, located in Rakai district, have learnt to live with snakes, especially cobras. They do not kill snakes and the reptiles do not bite them.
When Emmanuel Katongole, 60, had just arrived on Musambwa Island, he woke up one night to find a huge poisonous black cobra under his pillow.
He screamed for help, only to be rebuked by neighbours for ‘scaring off good luck’.
Musambwa residents believe their island is full of spirits, which appear in form of snakes. That is where the island gets its name, because in Luganda, musambwa means spirit.
The islanders look at themselves simply as visitors while the spirits are considered to be the owners of the island. For this reason, hurting a snake and having sex are strictly forbidden on Musambwa Islands, as these acts might attract punishment from the spirits.
Whoever wants to have sex goes to the main land, which is 10km away and it takes about one hour by motorised canoe.
“Anyone who annoys the spirits attracts punishment on the whole community, so he must be expelled from Musambwa,†says Katongole. “You can’t harm snakes without bringing trouble.â€
Enock Ntale, a conservationist on Musambwa Island, describes the association between the islanders and the snakes as “a harmonious relationship never witnessed anywhere else in the world.†He, however, dismisses the belief that the snakes represent spirits.
The island has a major breeding ground for birds and the snakes eat their (birds’) eggs. Musambwa is Africa’s largest breeding ground for the gray-headed gulls, which come from as far as West Africa to lay their eggs, according to Henry Seguya, the field coordinator for Nature Uganda. Total population of the birds on the island is estimated at 150,000.
Stephen Kigolo, a snake expert (herpetologist), says ordinarily snakes do not attack human beings.
“They will avoid trouble and only get violent when attacked or when they sense danger,†says Kigolo, who heads the Nile Trans-boundary Environment Action Project in Uganda. A snake might also bite if you come between it and its prey.
Kigolo adds that where human beings live close to animals without conflicting, in the long run they get used to each other’s presence, a phenomenon referred to as habituation. There are examples of elephants, hyenas and hippos that have become habituated in Queen Elizabeth National Park and snakes are not an exception.
Kigolo says Musambwa is not the only place where people have learnt to live with snakes. At Doho Rice scheme, Butaleja district, there is a big population of snakes attracted by rats that feed on spilt rice grains.
“In Doho most farmers do not hunt down snakes because they want them to deal with the rats. They also avoid hostile encounters with the snakes by working early in the morning when the snakes are inactive,†he says. Countrywide, many people share houses with snakes without knowing, according to Kigolo.
Whereas snakes would want to avoid sharing a room with human beings, they move into houses to look for prey such as rats. Any house that has rats is likely to have snakes, says Kigolo. It is particularly common where people live in a brick house that has not been plastered. “Snakes come into houses to prey on the rats and, usually, the owners do not know,†he says.
Contrary to popular belief, Kigolo maintains that a good snake is not a dead one. Snakes help human beings by eating rats and insects. One snake can eat up to 40 rats in a year. He adds that only 10% of snakes are poisonous. Indeed, Ugandan laws prohibit the killing of snakes.
Vernice Mirembe, an official of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) conservation department, says people who encounter snakes should call UWA instead of killing them. “UWA has many times rescued pythons from excited members of the public,†said Vernice Mirembe, UWA’s conservation department official.
However, conservationists argue that not many people have the contacts of UWA and this puts snakes at the risk of getting killed.
In addition, due to human population growths, snakes are being denied bushes. Thirdly, wildlife traders have been catching snakes from the wild and exporting them. Although wildlife authorities do not have data on the snake population in Uganda, there are signs that it is dwindling, says Kigolo.
He points out that not many donors are keen on funding research on reptiles and it is difficult to undertake a population census of snakes since they are shy animals. “We do not have data and many of the snakes could be disappearing without anyone noticing,†says Kigolo. “I do not understand why UWA authorises trade (in snakes) without data. No one knows whether the last snake is being caught for export.â€
This is a classical case of a false hunter being hunted. Forget the belief that snakes are a danger to human beings. Human beings are a danger to snakes.
TIPS
-Get rid of rats; they
attract snakes into
houses
-Do not let bushes
grow around your
house
-Avoid spots where you
frequently find snakes
-Wear jeans and gum
boots when going to
the bush
- Plants like tobacco
repel snakes because
they have a bad smell.
Plant them on
verandas
-Make sure there are
no holes or crevices in
your house where
snakes can hide
-To chase a snake from
a house, soak a piece
of cloth in paraffin
and put it in the
room. Be careful
not to cause a fire as
paraffin is flammable.
-When you encounter a
snake, do not panic.
Remain still and it will
move away.
Within an area of five acres and a population of less than 100 people, Musambwa Island on Lake Victoria has more than 2,000 snakes, a ratio of over 20 snakes per person.
Residents of the island, located in Rakai district, have learnt to live with snakes, especially cobras. They do not kill snakes and the reptiles do not bite them.
When Emmanuel Katongole, 60, had just arrived on Musambwa Island, he woke up one night to find a huge poisonous black cobra under his pillow.
He screamed for help, only to be rebuked by neighbours for ‘scaring off good luck’.
Musambwa residents believe their island is full of spirits, which appear in form of snakes. That is where the island gets its name, because in Luganda, musambwa means spirit.
The islanders look at themselves simply as visitors while the spirits are considered to be the owners of the island. For this reason, hurting a snake and having sex are strictly forbidden on Musambwa Islands, as these acts might attract punishment from the spirits.
Whoever wants to have sex goes to the main land, which is 10km away and it takes about one hour by motorised canoe.
“Anyone who annoys the spirits attracts punishment on the whole community, so he must be expelled from Musambwa,†says Katongole. “You can’t harm snakes without bringing trouble.â€
Enock Ntale, a conservationist on Musambwa Island, describes the association between the islanders and the snakes as “a harmonious relationship never witnessed anywhere else in the world.†He, however, dismisses the belief that the snakes represent spirits.
The island has a major breeding ground for birds and the snakes eat their (birds’) eggs. Musambwa is Africa’s largest breeding ground for the gray-headed gulls, which come from as far as West Africa to lay their eggs, according to Henry Seguya, the field coordinator for Nature Uganda. Total population of the birds on the island is estimated at 150,000.
Stephen Kigolo, a snake expert (herpetologist), says ordinarily snakes do not attack human beings.
“They will avoid trouble and only get violent when attacked or when they sense danger,†says Kigolo, who heads the Nile Trans-boundary Environment Action Project in Uganda. A snake might also bite if you come between it and its prey.
Kigolo adds that where human beings live close to animals without conflicting, in the long run they get used to each other’s presence, a phenomenon referred to as habituation. There are examples of elephants, hyenas and hippos that have become habituated in Queen Elizabeth National Park and snakes are not an exception.
Kigolo says Musambwa is not the only place where people have learnt to live with snakes. At Doho Rice scheme, Butaleja district, there is a big population of snakes attracted by rats that feed on spilt rice grains.
“In Doho most farmers do not hunt down snakes because they want them to deal with the rats. They also avoid hostile encounters with the snakes by working early in the morning when the snakes are inactive,†he says. Countrywide, many people share houses with snakes without knowing, according to Kigolo.
Whereas snakes would want to avoid sharing a room with human beings, they move into houses to look for prey such as rats. Any house that has rats is likely to have snakes, says Kigolo. It is particularly common where people live in a brick house that has not been plastered. “Snakes come into houses to prey on the rats and, usually, the owners do not know,†he says.
Contrary to popular belief, Kigolo maintains that a good snake is not a dead one. Snakes help human beings by eating rats and insects. One snake can eat up to 40 rats in a year. He adds that only 10% of snakes are poisonous. Indeed, Ugandan laws prohibit the killing of snakes.
Vernice Mirembe, an official of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) conservation department, says people who encounter snakes should call UWA instead of killing them. “UWA has many times rescued pythons from excited members of the public,†said Vernice Mirembe, UWA’s conservation department official.
However, conservationists argue that not many people have the contacts of UWA and this puts snakes at the risk of getting killed.
In addition, due to human population growths, snakes are being denied bushes. Thirdly, wildlife traders have been catching snakes from the wild and exporting them. Although wildlife authorities do not have data on the snake population in Uganda, there are signs that it is dwindling, says Kigolo.
He points out that not many donors are keen on funding research on reptiles and it is difficult to undertake a population census of snakes since they are shy animals. “We do not have data and many of the snakes could be disappearing without anyone noticing,†says Kigolo. “I do not understand why UWA authorises trade (in snakes) without data. No one knows whether the last snake is being caught for export.â€
This is a classical case of a false hunter being hunted. Forget the belief that snakes are a danger to human beings. Human beings are a danger to snakes.
TIPS
-Get rid of rats; they
attract snakes into
houses
-Do not let bushes
grow around your
house
-Avoid spots where you
frequently find snakes
-Wear jeans and gum
boots when going to
the bush
- Plants like tobacco
repel snakes because
they have a bad smell.
Plant them on
verandas
-Make sure there are
no holes or crevices in
your house where
snakes can hide
-To chase a snake from
a house, soak a piece
of cloth in paraffin
and put it in the
room. Be careful
not to cause a fire as
paraffin is flammable.
-When you encounter a
snake, do not panic.
Remain still and it will
move away.