Snakes are very common in many tropical countries, especially in rural areas, although most are not poisonous, a minority are highly venomous. Snakebite can be a serious medical problem for agricultural workers, fishermen, and so on because they encounter venomous snakes during their work. Thus, snakebite is a rural and an occupational hazard. Only a few of the many different types of venomous snakes are known to constitute a serious hazard to human beings, and the commoner species are briefly described. Snake venoms are highly toxic and all the poisonous snakes mentioned have more than enough venom to kill a man if this venom were all injected by the bite. Fortunately, when a venomous snake bites man, it is a defensive or warning bite when little or even no venom is usually injectedhence most human victims do not have serious poisoning.In rarer cases, significant amounts of venom may be injected leading to serious, even fatal poisoning. A brief account is given of the two main types of poisoning—general bleeding in viper bites, and paralysis in bites by elapid snakes (cobras, mambas, and so on). Prevention of snakebite is a matter mainly of common sense. First-aid treatment is discussed: 1. Do not panicl 2. Cover the site of the bite (but do not incise). 3. Apply a tourniquet. 4. Go to the nearest hospital. Antivenom is a specific medical treatment, needed only in serious poisoning when it is highly successful if correctly used (even many hours after the bite), if wrongly used, its effects can be more dangerous than those of the snakebite. Generally therefore, antivenom plays no part in the first-aid treatment of snakebite.