Snake bite statistics in Australia

Snakes bite around 3,000 Australians a year, but only a handful die. Hospital admissions for snake bites have climbed to a decade high, Queensland has by far the most bites, and brown snakes cause most deaths.

• Bites: around 3,000 a year across Australia¹.
• Hospital admissions: about 3,240 snake-related admissions in 2024–25, the highest in a decade.²
• Deaths: between 3 and 8 a year in official data, with 3 in 2023–24².
• Worst state: Queensland, with about half of all admissions (1,479 of 2,993 in 2023–24)³.
• Deadliest snake: brown snakes, behind 41% of confirmed envenomings and 17 of 23 deaths in 2005–2015⁴.
• Latest death: September 2025, in Katherine, Northern Territory⁵.
• Snake season: roughly October to April, peaking from December to February⁶.
• First aid: call 000, keep the person still and apply a pressure immobilisation bandage⁷.

Australia is often said to have around 3,000 snake bites a year, but that is an older estimate not based on any published study⁴, and hospital admissions alone have now passed it.

• Snake-related hospital admissions have risen from about 2,410 in 2015–16 to about 3,240 in 2024–25, the highest in the decade.²
• Admissions dipped during the pandemic years, to about 2,350 in 2021–22, before climbing again.²
• Queensland alone recorded 846 snake bite call-outs (initial requests for medical assistance) in 2022 and 986 in 2023⁹, consistent with the national pattern.
• Official hospital data tells a rising story: admissions for venomous snake and lizard bites reached 855 in 2024–25, the highest in a decade and up from 588 in 2015–16². A further 2,122 admissions that year were snake bites where it was unknown whether the snake was venomous.

Note: The 3,000 figure is a rough estimate that predates current hospital data, which counted about 3,240 admissions in 2024–25 alone. The chart shows hospital admissions only (AIHW totals across venomous, unknown and non-venomous snake bites).

Snakes bite far more Australians than any other dangerous wild animal, yet they kill only a handful of people a year.

• Snakes: about 3,000 bites a year¹, and 3 deaths in 2023–24².
• Crocodiles: 74 attacks and 11 deaths from 2015 to 2024¹¹ (see our crocodile attack statistics).
• Sharks: 19 recorded incidents, including 13 unprovoked bites, and 1 death in 2024¹².
• Spiders: an estimated 2,000 redback bites a year, and no deaths from a confirmed spider bite since 1979¹³ (see our spider bite statistics).

For more species, see our Australian wildlife statistics.

Brown snakes, led by the eastern brown snake (Pseudonaja textilis), cause the largest share of snake bites and deaths, accounting for 41% of envenomings where the snake type was confirmed in the Australian Snakebite Project (2005–2015)⁴.

• They were responsible for 23 out of 35 snake bite deaths (66%) between 2000 and 2016¹⁴.
• Tiger snakes (17%) and red-bellied black snakes (16%) are the next most common causes of confirmed envenoming⁴.
• In about 1 in 7 envenomings (117 of 835), the snake type could not be confirmed⁴.

The most recent reported snake bite death in Australia was in September 2025, when a 41-year-old woman died in Katherine, Northern Territory, within an hour of stepping on a snake on a suburban footpath. She saw no bite marks and did not realise she had been bitten⁵.

• In November 2024, a 16-year-old boy died after being bitten on the foot at his home near Gladstone, Queensland. He had not realised he had been bitten; the snake type was not confirmed¹⁶.
• In March 2024, a 47-year-old man died after multiple bites from a brown snake he had caught at a Townsville childcare centre¹⁷.
• Official data recorded 5 snake and lizard bite deaths in 2022–23 and 3 in 2023–24².
• Not every serious bite is fatal: in October 2024, Lovisa "Kiki" Sjoberg, 48, survived almost two weeks lost in the Snowy Mountains, the last four days after being bitten by a snake (believed to be a copperhead)¹⁸.

Snake season in Australia runs through the warmer months, roughly October to April⁶. Snake bite hospital admissions peak from December to February, at almost five times the winter level. Snakes are sluggish over winter and become active again as temperatures rise, just as people head outdoors to hike, garden and walk dogs.

• The NSW Poisons Information Centre took 320 calls about suspected or confirmed snake bites between 1 September and 20 December 2024¹.
• 61 snake bites in children under 15 were reported across NSW over the same period¹.
• A warm winter can bring snakes out early: in 2024 they were active earlier than after previous, cooler winters¹.

The risk is small for campers, caravanners and campervan travellers, but distance from help is what makes a bite in the bush dangerous. Of 85 people the Royal Flying Doctor Service flew to hospital from regional and remote Western Australia with suspected snake bites, only 5 (6%) turned out to be envenomed — yet 45% kept moving around after the bite, and it took an average of 38 minutes to get a pressure bandage on⁸.

Snake safety at your campsite, caravan or campervan

• Put shoes on before you step out of your caravan or campervan at a new site, and wear enclosed shoes around camp¹⁹.
• Walk the site before you set up and avoid long grass, firewood piles, garden waste and building debris, where snakes shelter¹⁹.
• Keep van doors and screens closed and sealed, so snakes following lizards or looking for cover can't get in¹⁹.
• Carry a torch when walking around camp at night¹⁹.
• Store food and rubbish in sealed containers, away from animals²⁰.
• Carry broad elastic pressure bandages in your first aid kit, enough to bandage a whole limb.
• Wear long trousers in long grass, and watch where you step and put your hands.
• Outside mobile coverage, carry a way to call for help, such as a satellite messenger or personal locator beacon⁸.
• Never try to catch or kill a snake: back away and give it room to leave.
• If you are bitten, don't walk back to camp or your van. Stay still, apply a pressure bandage and call for help¹⁹.
• Before heading somewhere remote, leave your trip plans with someone at home²⁰.

Planning a trip? See our Australian camping statistics, our Australian hiking statistics and our guide to wild camping rules.

Australian first aid guidelines recommend the pressure immobilisation technique for every suspected snake bite, even when there are no bite marks or pain⁷:

1. Call triple zero (000) for an ambulance.
2. Keep the person still, calm and under constant observation.
3. Apply a broad pressure bandage over the bite site, then bandage the entire limb.
4. Immobilise the limb with a splint or sling, and keep the person still until help arrives.

What not to do:

• DO NOT wash the bite area (venom residue can help identify the snake)
• DO NOT cut the wound or attempt to suck out venom
• DO NOT apply a tourniquet or ice
• DO NOT try to catch or kill the snake to identify it — it risks more bites and isn't needed for treatment⁸

How are snake bites treated in hospital?

Doctors decide whether to give antivenom based on where the bite happened, the person's symptoms and blood tests, usually with advice from a toxicologist⁸.

• Of 1,548 people treated for suspected snake bites in the Australian Snakebite Project (2005–2015), 835 were envenomed and 755 received antivenom⁴.
• The typical antivenom dose fell from four vials to one vial over the decade⁴.
• The median wait from bite to first antivenom was 4.3 hours, so first aid matters while help is on the way⁴.
• Ten of the 23 deaths in the study followed a cardiac arrest before the person reached hospital⁴.