Overview
- A 41-year-old Novi man was bitten by an eastern massasauga near a boat launch at Proud Lake Recreation Area and remains hospitalized but is expected to recover after treatment.
- Emergency crews transported the victim to the University of Michigan because it was the nearest facility with anti‑venom, and physicians say the hospital carries an antivenom that works against multiple snake species.
- A witness who filmed the snake said the victim moved closer to photograph the rattling snake before it struck, illustrating that close approaches increase the risk of a defensive bite.
- The eastern massasauga is Michigan’s only venomous snake, a shy wetland species listed as threatened with roughly 250 isolated populations today down from about 500 in older records.
- Officials urge park visitors to keep distance, call 911 if bitten, immobilize the limb and remove rings, and avoid cutting the wound, sucking venom, tourniquets or ice because most victims recover with prompt care and many bites are dry.