Venomous Snakes Move Higher on Mount Everest

Everest's slopes have a new threat slithering in: Venomous snakes once largely confined to Nepal's lowlands are turning up at higher altitudes, forcing remote hospitals to hunt for antivenom. Medical staff members in the Solukhumbu district, home to Mount Everest, say they're suddenly treating snakebites in places where such cases used to be rare. Since mid-April, the Telegraph reports, one primary hospital there has seen around 30 bite patients; two were serious enough to send to Kathmandu for specialized care.

Experts point to a warming climate—Nepal is heating at nearly twice the global rate—along with changing land use and better transportation, as reasons that species like king cobras and pit vipers are moving higher. Snakebite is already a severely underreported killer in Nepal. Research suggests about 80% of deaths occur before patients ever reach a clinic. Doctors report more venomous snakes in hill and mountain districts, and wildlife rescuers captured nine king cobras near Everest last year alone. Authorities have pledged to cut snakebite deaths and disabilities by half by 2030, but specialists warn that without appropriate antivenom in mountain regions, the toll could rise as the snakes keep climbing.