Overview
- The peer‑reviewed study, published in May 2026 in Global Ecology and Conservation, analysed 55,467 rescues from 2013 to 2022 and found an 8–10% yearly increase in human–snake encounters.
- Encounters clustered in 232 hotspots that cover 6.9% of Hyderabad, with most in fast‑growing suburban zones tied to urban expansion and land‑use change.
- Two adaptable species dominated rescues, with spectacled cobras and Indian rat snakes making up 76% of cases across the decade.
- Rescues peak during the monsoon from July to November, with the highest levels in October, matching snake breeding cycles and periods of greater activity.
- The team from CSIR‑CCMB and Friends of Snakes Society links snake persistence to synanthropisation—use of green spaces, drains and abundant rodents—and urges scaled rescue capacity, public education, and urban planning that preserves habitat connectivity to reduce conflict and avoid rodent surges if snakes decline.