Do snakes ever attack or chase people?
The basic answer is no – most snakes either lay perfectly still – or flee when approached by a person. But the word “ever” covers a lot of territory and the fact is that on rare occasions in mid springtime some people, including herpetologists, have reported being advanced upon by adult black racers. In some cases this is simply the snake trying to get to its “home hiding place” and the person was in the way. In these cases the advancing snake simply goes right past the person onward to its destination. But there have also been cases of black racers approaching and striking at people who did not provoke them. However, by far the most common response from black racers is to speedily “race away” from any person. Black racers are non-venomous and any bite by them would be like a scratch from a bramble.
