World Snake Day - 16 July 2024

Tags: Important Days

World Snake Day is celebrated on July 16 across the world to raise awareness about the diverse species of snakes.

An Overview of the News

• Aims to raise awareness about snakes, educate the public, dispel myths, and promote conservation.

• Encourages discovery and fascination with the approximately 3,500 snake species.

Snake Diversity:

• Around 3,500 snake species exist globally.

• Only about 600 species are venomous.

• Approximately 200 venomous species pose a significant risk to human life (World Health Organization).

Notable Snake Species:

• Smallest Snake: Barbados thread snake, measuring about 4 inches.

• Longest Snake: Reticulated python.

• Heaviest Snake: Green anaconda.

• Distinctive Viper: Atheris hispida (bush viper), with a scaled head resembling mythical dragons.

Social Media Hashtag:

• #WorldSnakeDay promotes sharing information and raising awareness about snakes.

National Parks of India:

• There are currently 106 national parks in India.

• The largest national park in India is the Hemis National Park (Ladakh).

• The smallest national park in India is South Button National Park (Andaman and Nicobar Islands).

• The first national park of India is Jim Corbett National Park (Uttarakhand), which was established in 1936.

• Cheetah was introduced to Kuno National Park in India for the first time after independence.

• The maximum number of tigers in India is located in Madhya Pradesh, followed by Karnataka.

• The state of Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of national parks in India, with a total of 11 national parks.