Generales

By: Carlos Olimpo Restrepo S. - Journalist

An application for Android phones adds to the contributions made by Universidad de Antioquia to learn more about these animals and educate people on how to coexist with them since humans and snakes share habitats.

The Bothrops asper, locally known as “talla X”, “mapaná” or “rabo de chucha”, is one of the most common snakes in Antioquia. Its venom is hemotoxic. Photo: Serpentarium UdeA

That they feed on the milk of cattle or even nursing mothers, that they chase people for kilometers to bite them, that they wait stealthily among trees and undergrowth to wrap around and spank them in a way that they will remember for days and weeks.

These are some of the myths about snakes that have been spread for decades in Colombia, a country with one of the highest densities of these animals in the world and the third country in Latin America in snake accidents after Mexico and Brazil.

Antioquia has the highest number of ophidian accidents of any department in Colombia since 15 out of every 100 snake bites to humans occur in this region, according to the records of the National Health Institute (INS) since 2004.

Although it is not the main cause of death in this area or the country, it does imply a great burden for the health system and other state agencies that must be mobilized to achieve adequate and timely care for those affected.

That is why the contribution that Universidad de Antioquia has been making for decades is very important. It works alongside research teams such as the Herpetology Group of Antioquia, attached to the Institute of Biology of the Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences, and the Toxinology, Therapeutic and Food Alternatives, of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Food Sciences (CIFAL).

The most recent contribution was developed precisely by the latter work team: "Serpientes de Antioquia" (Snakes of Antioquia). It is an application for cell phones with verified information about these animals, whether they are poisonous or not, their geographical distribution in the department and recommendations in case of any contact or approach to them.

"In the serpentarium, we listened to visitors asking questions that may seem normal to some people, based on popular beliefs, which are passed from mouth to mouth. Some say they have directly seen these cases; others, that a trusted person told them", recalled chemist Alejandro Serna González, who is working on his doctorate in the Toxinology, Therapeutic and Food Alternatives Group.

This professor is one of the creators of the application along with two other teachers from the group: Jaime Andrés Pereañez Jiménez and Elkyn Johan Granados Vega. Three undergraduate students —Daniel Bocanumenth Echeverri (Biology), Juan Felipe Herrera Alzate (Biology) and Diego Fernando Vélez (Electronic Engineering)— also participated in the creation of the app.

"We wanted to show that snakes are animals with their own habits, with very peculiar physical characteristics, such as not having eyelids. The way they interact with the environment is different or strange to us, like when they stick out their tongues for certain activities", Serna said.

"This got me thinking about the need for people to really know what snakes are. Many people see one of these animals and think it is poisonous or that it will attack them, but they ignore that snakes fulfill important functions within ecosystems, such as pest control. This shows that there is a lack of education", he added.

Helping Identify Species 

Another reason that led the researcher to propose the creation of this application was learning about many of the consequences that a snake bite can cause: not only dying but also the loss of functioning of a limb or an organ.

In this regard, Johan Granados said that one of the objectives is that the inhabitants of the department report the sighting of snakes of any species, "which helps to develop a broad characterization and to care for bitten people. If the snake that causes an ophidian accident is identified, the treatment can be appropriately selected".

To do this, the application allows its users to send photos of the sightings, and one of the group's experts reviews them to identify the animal. This enriches the database, georeferencing and other aspects that are useful for citizens, health personnel and scientific researchers.

"What we want to do in the future is process images by artificial intelligence, which will allow any person, not only a biologist, to know in real time which species they are seeing and its characteristics", Granados said.

"The fact that a snake is venomous does not mean we have to chase it. It has a process and functions in nature, and we have to respect that", said this doctor in Pharmaceutical and Food Sciences.

How the App Works

"Serpientes de Antioquia" is an application that, for now, can be downloaded only on cell phones with Android operating system. It was one of the winners of the ConTIC Investigo contest of UdeA’s Vice Rector's Office for Teaching.

The app allows users to learn about some of the most important snakes in Antioquia —there is an initial record of 10 venomous and 35 non-venomous snakes— find out their scientific name and habits and get general information about each of the species.

There are also recommendations to prevent ophidian accidents, such as the distance at which live animals should be observed. Their daily habits are also described, especially for agricultural workers. In addition, there is information on what to do in case of an accident.