A golfer who hit a ball into the rough had his bad luck compounded when he was bitten by the UK’s only deadly species of snake.

Ben Bishop was rummaging after hitting a wayward shot while playing at a course in Kent when he felt a sharp pain in his right foot.

Just half an hour later, he began sweating, developed a rash and was struggling to breathe as his friends took him to a nearby hospital where he was treated for anaphylactic shock.

The 57-year-old had not put the two events together and medics were only able to join the dots when they noticed a small snake bite on his heel.

‘You wouldn’t believe that something apparently quite minor can lead to your body shutting down… It’s extraordinary,’ he told The Sun.

‘I was rummaging around in dead twigs and branches and suddenly got an unusually sharp hot needle feeling straight in my heel.

‘Half an hour later I could feel my face going numb. I was struggling to breathe, swallowing was difficult and I was shaking and sweaty.’

Mr Bishop, a building maintenance worker, had been playing at Cobtree Manor golf club in Maidstone when he lost his ball at around the sixth hole.

His mates, having taken him to a local accident and emergency department, were quick to begin the banter by buying him a rubber snake – which he has posed with in pictures.

‘If the ball goes into the rough now I take a penalty and hit a second one instead of looking for the first one.’

Mr Bishop was unlucky to be bitten with around 100 incidents per year in the UK. However, he was right to be cautious as their venom can be lethal – although only 14 deaths have been recorded since 1876, the last being a child in 1975.

Adders can grow up to 60cm (24 inches) and can live up to 15 years. They are infrequently found in British undergrowth and grasslands during the spring, summer and autumn, being recognisable for their dark zigzag pattern.

The Wildlife Trust states: “The adder is the UK’s only venomous snake, but its venom is generally of little danger to humans.

‘An adder bite can be painful and cause inflammation, but is really only dangerous to the very young, ill or old. If bitten, medical attention should be sought immediately, however.’

The trust added: ‘Adders are secretive animals and prefer to slither off into the undergrowth rather than confront and bite humans and domestic animals; most attacks happen when they are trodden on or picked up.

‘Instead, they use their venom to immobilise and kill their prey of small mammals, nestlings and lizards.’

Source:
courtesy of METRO

by William Mata

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