Rattled: Juniata Biologist Hisses 'Snakes on a Plane'
It seems like the perfect horror movie. In "Snakes on a Plane," a seething psycho bent on revenge brings a few hundred venomous snakes onto an airliner bound for the United States. Hiss-teria ensues, at least until Samuel L. Jackson takes matters in hand. John Matter, associate professor of biology, has done extensive research on snakes and lizards. In fact, he once worked with more than 200 snakes as a graduate student and often is asked to remove rattlesnakes from properties around Huntingdon ("Interestingly, this summer when the movie has come out has been very active for snakes. I've had a lot of calls this summer to remove snakes."). Matter graciously agreed to talk about a few of the plot points of the summer thriller.
Question
Did snakes in general need the publicity this movie has generated?
Answer
Snakes are generally misunderstood by the public and to put them in another negative situation only increases the misunderstanding and apprehension the public feels. Snakes have had enough bad PR.
Q
The villain of the movie sneaks these snakes onto the plane through baggage. In those unheated spaces, what would any snake normally do?
A
At altitude, they would basically go to sleep, but the movie has a basis in real life. The military transports between Guam and Hawaii are checked every time by a special squad when they land in Hawaii to prevent the brown tree snake from being introduced into Hawaii's habitat. The brown tree snake has decimated the ground bird population in Guam and they want to prevent that from happening in Hawaii. They do find snakes 'hitchhiking' on these military flights.
Q
The other plot point has the snakes being exposed to some sort of snake pheromone that excites the reptiles into a frenzy. Would snakes go crazy upon exposure to a sex hormone?
A
Pheromones would get a snake excited, particularly reproductively. They might be a lot more active, slithering around looking for female snakes. It wouldn't make them more likely to bite people. Snakes respond to threats, they don't go looking to bite people. In fact, many snakes who bite humans deliver a 'dry bite' with little or no venom. It's more of a warning bite.
Q
If you get bitten by a venomous snake is it immediate death for you?
A
It depends on the snake. Cobras, sea snakes and other species have neurotoxic venom which can cause your heart to stop, your breathing to stop--these are very bad things. Rattlesnakes and copperheads have hemolytic venom which can break down tissue and cause great pain, but it won't kill you immediately in most cases.
Q
If you put together a few hundred venomous snakes in an enclosed space what happens?
A
If it's 500 rattlesnakes, they'd get along pretty well because they overwinter together in dens. If you get cobras in there with other snakes, the other snakes get nervous because cobras are snake eaters.