Does Hawaii have poisonous snakes or spiders? (Pearl City, Ewa Beach: college, live in)

[Calico Salsa]

Originally Posted by Ellwood

I thought they had all kinds of laws that prevent snakes being brought in. It used to be the only place in HI that had snakes was the zoo. What changed?

Unfortunately the laws or the enforcement thereof hasn't stopped people from sneaking in snakes or other prohibited species. There will always be people who try to get around the law, for their own enjoyment or for profit. I would suspect it is mainly the latter that is the main cause.

[speedphotos]

Feb 10, 2010 I just photographed a garter snake on Kauai at Anini beach, next to the road. It was gray with two blue stripes running full length of its back. Looks like a garter snake to me, about 18 inches long. I have been told several times by locals that there is no such thing but I got the pic.

[LaState35]

What about rats? I haven't seen anything about them in the blogs but I had a friend who lived on Oahu that told me there was a huge rat problem.

[mdand3boys]

Originally Posted by LaState35

What about rats? I haven't seen anything about them in the blogs but I had a friend who lived on Oahu that told me there was a huge rat problem.

Yes there is - on all islands. They even climb trees and bite into various fruits.

[Sweetbeet]

Originally Posted by speedphotos

Feb 10, 2010 I just photographed a garter snake on Kauai at Anini beach, next to the road. It was gray with two blue stripes running full length of its back. Looks like a garter snake to me, about 18 inches long. I have been told several times by locals that there is no such thing but I got the pic.

Please post (or send me via DM) a picture. If it was a brown tree snake, that is a VERY BAD thing. Although I am a snake lover (had an 8' boa in NY, which we gave to a good home before leaving), those things must NOT be allowed to get established here!! Even I would capture and/or kill it if I saw one (if captured, I'd call the local invasive species experts to have it checked out).

[mortisha]

We just got back from a trip to Kauai and it was wonderful! Most of our trip was camping and one of the silly delights I experienced was walking barefoot across a football-field length of grass at night to the bathroom. Besides stupendous star gazing I repeatedly had to remind myself that I DIDN"T have to spend one second worrying about rattlers like I would if I was wandering around outside at night in Wyoming. A surprising little delight that added to all the huge delights of Kauai. Don't worry a second about creepy crawly things, we didn't see any. One night we had a few mosquitoes on the deserted beach...our biggest annoyance was a rooster that persisited in crowing every morning starting about 4:00 am. Hard to shut that out when you are camping. Enjoy!

[onelife1luv]

There are three species of snakes in Hawaii, Brown Snakes, Yellow Belly Sea Snakes, and Boa Constrictors. They are very very rare so I wouldn't worry about finding them.

Centipedes are quite common but all you gotta do is kick it or smash it WITH shoes. The sting of the Centipede is very painful.. I was walking one day coming back from work and this damn Centipede drops from a tree on a sidewalk and goes on my neck and stung me. I had to go to the hospitle but it's all G.

I'm not sure about the types of Scorpions we have but I now for a fact that we have Scorpions in Hawaii. I found a Scorpion on a tree hiding from the rain wen I was out camping with my friends. We put it in a container poked some holes on the top of the container, and kept it dried until the rain stopped then set it free.

Spiders are very common in Hawaii and there are a few poisonous ones. The Widow Spider is dangerous but It's kind of rare to find in Hawaii so I wouldn't worry about it. There are a few others types of spiders like the Cane Spider but they aren't deadly at all as long as you don't **** it off.

So overall you shouldn't worry about the spiders, snakes, scorpions, etc Hawaii is a very safe place.

[Jungjohann]

You forgot ALL about the cannibals!! Of course, their other primary source of nourishment is boa constrictors, and yellow bellied sea snakes, so,,, that probably explains a lot....AUWE.........................ha awi mai imaha............

Aloha and,,, uuuurrrrpppp,,, scuze me,, okolemaluna...

[Bluehawk2254]

Are you SERIOUS? My family and me was going to move there soon, to get a fresh start, but after reading all this, im not taking that chance at all.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by KonaKat

Not to mention the nasty bacterial infections one can get from those falls on the lava, especially near some shorelines.

Not to mention the nasty infections you can get from tiny scratches in the forest, because tropical weather keeps all kines microorganisms alive and well.

When I first arrived, I was ignorant of this and worked at clearing my property while wearing shorts. Within a week the tiny scratches on my legs turned into nasty rashes that took months to heal. On the Puna side especially, hydrogen peroxide and Neosporin are your friends. ANY scratch should be attended to.

Oh, yeah, and be sure to hang up wet clothes and towels to dry. Otherwise, they can mildew in no time.

Doesn't Hawai'i sound like fun!

BTW, the one native snake is small, shy, and non-poisonous. Chances are you will never see one. But little lizards (skinks, anoles, geckoes) are everywhere. Don't try to catch them in your hands. They'll nip you in self-defense.