ANIMALS: Why do these believers handle poisonous snakes?

Is your pet getting anxious? Plus, a huge coral colony discovered, hippos vs. humans, a new type of whale [ANIMALS]( [VIEW ONLINE]( [ANIMALS]( [National Geographic]( [TODAY'S BIG TOPIC:]( [A DANGEROUS SIGN OF FAITH]( Thursday, February 4, 2021 PHOTOGRAPHS BY STACY KRANITZ By [Rachael Bale]( ANIMALS Executive Editor They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. — Mark 16:18 This is what Jesus told his followers would be possible, according to the Gospel of Mark, if they are true believers. Most Christians don’t take this part of the Bible literally—but some do. Pentecostal “signs followers,” many of whom live in Appalachia, put this verse to the test regularly by drinking poison and handling venomous snakes during church services. God will protect them from harm, they believe, and if they get a snakebite or get sick and die—that’s God calling them home. Usually snake handlers use rattlers, plus the occasional cottonmouth or copperhead—species that can be found in the wild in the American Southeast. More recently, though, handlers also have been known to buy species like cobras and Asian vipers from reptile shows. If it sounds dangerous, it is, Julia Duin [reports for Nat Geo](. Rattlesnakes are in the viper family, and their venom can destroy tissue, cause severe swelling and bleeding, and lead to kidney damage and respiratory failure. (Pictured above, snakes in a Jolo, West Virginia, church; below, worshippers lay hands on Belinda Curtis at a Section, Alabama church.) Some adherents minimize the danger. “I’ve been bit twice by a copperhead, and I didn’t go [to a doctor],” one Tennessee pastor told Duin. “I just stayed home, and the Lord healed me.” Other snake handlers have similar stories. That’s because not every bite comes with venom. Some are completely dry, and others only inject only a little bit into the flesh. In cases where venom is injected, about [a third of those bites are mild]( a quarter are moderate, and 10 to 15 percent are severe. The bites at snake handling churches likely skew more mild. The director of the Kentucky Reptile Zoo, which takes in snakes that law enforcement has confiscated from snake handlers, says many come in weak from poor care. A weak snake would have trouble injecting high doses of venom, so that also may help snake handlers avoid some of the worst bites. [Check out our story]( to see photos from snake handling church services and to learn more about how the practice is evolving. Do you get this newsletter daily? If not, [sign up here]( or forward to a friend. TODAY IN A MINUTE Drilling in elephant habitat: The search for oil and gas in the watershed of the world-famous, wildlife-rich Okavango Basin of Namibia and Botswana continues. A multimillion-dollar drilling rig from Houston broke ground on the first test well in elephant habitat about 160 miles from the delta, [Nat Geo’s Wildlife Watch reports](. A private company has licensed more than 13,200 square miles of land in Namibia and Botswana to explore for oil and gas. After a Nat Geo article in October, [authorities excluded another section of land from the license](. Wildlife Watch, [funded by the National Geographic Society]( shines a light on the commercial exploitation of wildlife and other valued resources. [Learn more](. Rhino population drops: Poaching, corruption, and drought have led to a 70 percent fall in number of rhinos over the past decade in Kruger National Park, the jewel of South Africa’s park system, [Nat Geo’s Dina Fine Maron reports](. A park report notes that poaching also affects breeding and calf survival. Each female could have at least 10 calves in her lifetime, and calves without a mom rarely survive. Kruger’s rhinos make up about 30 percent of the world’s estimated 18,000 wild rhinos. A coral discovery: It’s more than 26 feet high. Oval shaped. And one of the biggest coral colonies ever discovered, [NOAA researchers say](. The size of the find, off Ta'u Island in American Samoa, has been attributed to mild wave activity and minimal human contact. A new type of whale: Researchers think they may have found a new species of baleen whale after examining the skull of a 38-foot, 30-ton mammal that washed up in 2019 in the Everglades. It had been thought to be a Bryde’s whale, a type of baleen whale, but an examination of its skeleton showed it likely is from a distinct species, [the Miami Herald reports](. The COVID-fighting dogs: The Atlantic’s photo curator, Alan Taylor, has created a collection of images showing the canines who sniff out the coronavirus all over the world. It is delightful, and so are these good dogs. [See them here](. YOUR INSTAGRAM PHOTO OF THE DAY PHOTOGRAPH BY [@STEVE_WOODS_PHOTOGRAPHY]( A watchful mom: It took hours, but this coastal wolf and her seven cubs on Canada’s Vancouver Island warmed up—to a point—to photographer Steve Woods. She “would come and sit down near us to communicate to her cubs that we posed no threat. They would then come and play with each other in front of our hides as she looked on, always keeping one eye on the cubs and one eye on us.” The wolves are endemic to the Pacific Northwest’s temperate rainforests but are endangered because of habitat loss and hunting pressure. Related: [The rare swimming wolves that eat seafood]( THE BIG TAKEAWAY PHOTOGRAPH BY BRIAN OTIENO Stay away from the hippos! Hunger and economic depression are luring more Kenyans to wade into Lake Naivasha for tilapia, carp, and catfish. Hippos are there, too, increasingly squeezed for human-free land as the lake rises and development moves closer to shore. Emmanuel Adinda (pictured above) is one of an increasing number of people who have been attacked by the world’s deadliest mammal. The 40-year-old father of three says he has little choice but to continue fishing. “The lake is where you get your daily bread, so there is nothing else you can do,” [he tells Nat Geo.]( [READ MORE]( DID A FRIEND FORWARD THIS TO YOU? Come back tomorrow for Whitney Johnson on the latest in photography news. If you’re not a subscriber, [sign up here]( to also get Debra Adams Simmons on history, George Stone on travel, and Victoria Jaggard on science. THE LAST GLIMPSE PHOTOGRAPH BY HANNAH REYES MORALES A friend indeed—and, in need? Pets like Casey, the Siberian husky therapy dog pictured above, have been invaluable to people managing through the pandemic and various lockdowns and quarantines. Pet owners report greater exercise, lower blood pressure, and reduced stress. But researchers say pandemic restrictions may be taking a toll on pets. “Some pets are exhibiting signs of stress, such as increased barking, fear of loud or sudden noises, and anxiety when at home alone,” [Rachel May writes for Nat Geo](. [READ ON]( This newsletter has been curated and edited by David Beard, with photo selections by Jen Tse. Kimberly Pecoraro and Gretchen Ortega helped produce this newsletter. Have an idea, a link, a dog or cat that has helped you through the pandemic? We’d love to hear from you at david.beard@natgeo.com. And thanks for reading. [NGM]( [NGM]( SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS We'd like to hear from you! Tell us what you think of our emails by sharing your feedback in this short survey. [TAKE THE SURVEY]( [SHOP]( [DONATE]( [SUBSCRIBE]( [TRAVEL]( [READ OUR LATEST STORIES]( [SHOP]( [DONATE]( [SUBSCRIBE]( [TRAVEL]( [FB]( [Twitter]( [IG]( Clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and National Geographic Channel links will take you away from our National Geographic Partners site where different terms of use and privacy policy apply. This email was sent to: {EMAIL}. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored. This email contains an advertisement from: National Geographic | 1145 17th Street, N.W. | Washington, D.C. 20036 You are receiving this email because you elected to receive marketing communications from National Geographic under the terms of our [Privacy Policy](. [Unsubscribe]( © 2021 National Geographic Partners, LLC, All rights reserved. {LITMUS TRACKING PIXEL}