Citation
Snake bites into reality show participant
January 12, 2011 | Author DevSur
PARAMARIBO, Suriname--One of the Dutch girls who was dropped in the Suriname jungle for the filming of the reality TV program “Real Girls in the Jungle” was bitten by a non venomous boa constrictor snake last week.
The girl, Ymke Wieringa, actually opened a box which she had been told held a snake; this was a section of the reality series, in which the participants were dared to do hairy stuff, such as opening a box that supposedly held a dangerous animal. The other girls chickened out, but Ymke, apparently a fearless daredevil, opened her box and … the constrictor leaped out, strung itself around her under-arm and bit her in her hand.
Though the snake wasn’t venomous, Ymke was rushed to the Academic Hospital in Paramaribo, where she was immediately admitted for a few days, because the wounds had inflamed. Meanwhile, filming of the next episode in the jungle continued uninterrupted.
The show, produced by Dutch TV station RTL, is a drop-out race from which the ultimate reality TV heroine should emerge. The ten girls that were selected to rough it out in Suriname’s inlands, all previously appeared in previous reality shows; this show is an adaptation of the concept of the “Big Brother” shows and is scheduled for broadcast next month.
While it is not clear which type of boa bit poor Ymke, it is assumed it was a red tail boa, a common boa constrictor in Suriname. Adult red tail boas can reach 10 feet in length, but average size is about 7 feet; larger sized specimens occur rather seldom. Actually, two boas captured in Suriname are the largest on record: one reached 13.5 feet, the other 14 feet.
Boa constrictors will strike when they feel threatened, and will bite in defense. This bite can be painful, especially from large snakes, but is rarely dangerous. However, care must be taken to ensure that infection doesn’t result from the injury. Boa constrictors are ambush predators and as such will often lie in wait for an appropriate prey to come along at which point they will attack. The boa will first strike at the prey, grabbing it with its teeth, and then proceed to constrict the prey until death before consuming it whole.
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