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Speaker 1: We are due to Well to catch up and talk

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Speaker 1: about the situation with snakes at this point in time

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Speaker 1: around the territory. I know that there's been quite a

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Speaker 1: few more snake sightings. But then there were three people

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Speaker 1: who were treated after being bitten by snakes, all in

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Speaker 1: separate incidents. Earlier in the week. There was an eight

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Speaker 1: year old girl. There was then a forty five year

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Speaker 1: old man in Tenant Creek. The eight year old girl,

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Speaker 1: I understand that she was beaten after the snakes slithered

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Speaker 1: out from underneath a fridge when she went to open it.

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Speaker 1: It's the stuff that nightmares are made of, if you

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Speaker 1: ask me. And then there was also in Nightcliff earlier

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Speaker 1: in the week, Well paramedics were called out to treat

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Speaker 1: a twenty five year old man who was also bitten

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Speaker 1: by a snake. Now joining us on the line to

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Speaker 1: talk a little bit more about snakes around the territory

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Speaker 1: is Territory Wildlife Park manager and visitor experience and animal

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Speaker 1: expert Simon Ferguson.

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Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Simon.

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Speaker 3: Good morning, How are you going.

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Speaker 2: Y're really good.

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Speaker 1: Thank you so much for your time this morning, Simon.

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Speaker 1: I was just detailing these three snake bite incidents that

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Speaker 1: have occurred throughout this week. Is it a time of

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Speaker 1: year or you know, is there more snakes around at

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Speaker 1: the moment or is it just an unlucky coincidence.

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Speaker 3: I think it's a little bit of all three rolled

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Speaker 3: into one. So it is very unlikely for us to

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Speaker 3: have three butts in such quick succession here in the NT. Certainly,

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Speaker 3: the amount of snakes doesn't change throughout the year. They're

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Speaker 3: either just hiding or active this time of year, though

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Speaker 3: they are a little bit more active obviously in the

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Speaker 3: top end. Our temperatures are up, we've got a bit

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Speaker 3: of rain and that will often increase our snake activity.

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Speaker 3: Down in Tenant though, they've had quite a bit of

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Speaker 3: rain this week, So I suspect what's happened down there

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Speaker 3: is potentially some of the snakes have been flooded out

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Speaker 3: of their regular hiding spots and they might be out

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Speaker 3: and about on the move, increasing the chances of interacting

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Speaker 3: with people.

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Speaker 1: So is that the case when there's a bit more

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Speaker 1: rain about. Obviously, the snakes, depending on how much rain

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Speaker 1: there is, they may not be able to hide as

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Speaker 1: well as what they usually would.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, Well, down in ten and it's usually fairly arid,

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Speaker 3: so for most times of the year. Yeah, snakes can

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Speaker 3: shelter away intact in the ground and that sort of thing.

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Speaker 3: But they've had a phenomenal amount of rain down there

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Speaker 3: this week, which is great for the countryside, So a

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Speaker 3: lot of those hiding spots that the snakes would be

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Speaker 3: regularly using, yeah, might be filled up with water at

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Speaker 3: the moment.

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Speaker 2: Yeah.

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Speaker 1: And what about for us up here in the top end,

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Speaker 1: is there a certain type of snake that we see

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Speaker 1: more of or you know, is it this time of

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Speaker 1: the year that we see more of them about or not?

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Speaker 2: Really, we do.

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Speaker 3: See more through wet season. A lot of our snacks

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Speaker 3: are nocturnal and a lot of them will be sort

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Speaker 3: of stimulated by an afternoon shower, so that may increase

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Speaker 3: their activity patterns. Obviously it's warmer, so they'll be about

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Speaker 3: looking for more foods as their metabolays will have increased

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Speaker 3: as well. So snakes are certainly more active in the

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Speaker 3: Top End through our wet season. And yeah, we always

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Speaker 3: need to be vigilant though and keeping an eye out

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Speaker 3: for them.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, Simon, what can we do? I mean, if

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Speaker 1: you've got a snake in your home? Or firstly, if

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Speaker 1: you've got a snake in your home, what's the best

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Speaker 1: advice for people?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, so do not try to catch it or kill it.

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Speaker 3: That's when people invariably get fit. Yes, the best thing

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Speaker 3: to do is from a space distance, keep an eye

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Speaker 3: on the snake. There is a government led snake catcher

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Speaker 3: service in Catherine, Darwin and Ala Springs, so if you

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Speaker 3: are in those locations call the snake catcher number. They

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Speaker 3: will come and retrieve the snake. The best thing to

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Speaker 3: do though, is to assist them is to maintain a

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Speaker 3: safe distance, don't try to interact with the snake and

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Speaker 3: just try to keep an eye on it so that

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Speaker 3: they know where to look for it when they arrive.

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Speaker 3: Snakes are a natural part of our ecosystem and they

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Speaker 3: fulfill very important roles, so we need to have them

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Speaker 3: around us. But obviously we don't need to be bitten

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Speaker 3: and they don't need to be in our homes, so

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Speaker 3: that snow catching service is absolutely brilliant for that.

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Speaker 1: And when it comes to those snake bites, I know

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Speaker 1: that obviously you're not a paramedic, but what's the best

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Speaker 1: thing for people to do?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, So with in Australia, we do. You get a

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Speaker 3: few bites each year, but the number of deaths that

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Speaker 3: we have from snake bite each year is absolutely, very

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Speaker 3: very low, And the reason for that is that most

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Speaker 3: of us are trained in their state or have some

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Speaker 3: basic understanding of their stage. So, yeah, lying the patient

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Speaker 3: down and keeping them calm is incredibly important. Applying that

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Speaker 3: pressure bandage is also incredibly important. And yeah, getting access

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Speaker 3: to medical treatment is incredibly important. So don't move the victim,

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Speaker 3: get the paramedics to come to them, keep them calm,

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Speaker 3: and get that pressure bandage on is the absolute best

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Speaker 3: thing to do. Obviously, try to try to avoid being Yeah,

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Speaker 3: up here in the top end, a lot of our

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Speaker 3: snakes are actually non venomous, but were everyone to treat

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Speaker 3: everything as venimous until proven otherwise.

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Speaker 1: Simon you are You're obviously the territory wildlife park manager

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Speaker 1: and of visitor experience, but you're also an animal expert.

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Speaker 2: Have you ever been bitten by a snake?

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Speaker 3: I have something that I'm proud of you. I've worked

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Speaker 3: with snakes over in many capacities. I've not been bitten

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Speaker 3: by anything venamous, but I have had accidental feeding bits

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Speaker 3: from python.

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Speaker 2: But I would be proud of that. I'd be like,

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Speaker 2: yeah a snake.

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Speaker 3: No, through good husbandry, we don't try to get no.

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Speaker 1: But I would imagine, you know, in the in the

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Speaker 1: job that you do, in the wonderful job that you do,

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Speaker 1: that sometimes it would, you know, like sometimes well, you're

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Speaker 1: in a situation that a lot of us never ever

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Speaker 1: even come close to. You know, you're dealing with the

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Speaker 1: wildlife in ways that people like me just never ever experience.

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Speaker 3: This is true. Unfortunately, it is part of the game

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Speaker 3: that occasionally we do end up more scratched by our beloved.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, oh for sure, Now, mate, I understand you guys

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Speaker 1: have probably got heaps of stuff on as well in

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Speaker 1: the leading to Christmas and over the holiday period, lots

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Speaker 1: of exciting stuff happening out at the Territory Wildlife Park.

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Speaker 2: Yeah.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely, I mean we're we're predicting a pretty nice attendance

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Speaker 3: o their Christmas and New Yarths period. I just spect

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Speaker 3: that a lot of people have visitors coming up from

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Speaker 3: down South, and what better place to bring them than

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Speaker 3: the Territory Wildlife Park and give them a taste of

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Speaker 3: the top end obviously, our nocturnal health and our aquarium

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Speaker 3: as fullier condition so gives a nice little rest but

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Speaker 3: from the heat. But we've got our full program of

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Speaker 3: daily talks and keep your presentations running throughout the day.

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Speaker 3: And I'm just a reminder that our wet season trading

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Speaker 3: hours nine to three pm, so come out early while

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Speaker 3: it's cooler, enjoy the animals while they're active, and go

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Speaker 3: home and have an afternoon lap.

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Speaker 1: Great advice, I reckon, I might have to do that

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Speaker 1: over the Christmas holiday period.

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Speaker 2: Simon, lovely to talk to you today.

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Speaker 1: Thank you so very much for coming on the show

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Speaker 1: and giving us that advice when it comes to snakes.

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Speaker 3: No worries. Merry Christmas to everyone, and.

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Speaker 2: Take care you too, Thanks Simon.

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Speaker 1: That's Simon Ferguson there from the Territory Wildlife part