What to do if you get bitten by a snake in North Carolina, and how to appreciate them from afar

By Leoneda Inge,

Published April 23, 2025 at 1:18 PM EDT

A juvenile copperhead sits curled up on a mossy green patch

As the weather warms, many animals emerge — including snakes. Co-host Leoneda Inge talks with a reptile conservation biologist to find out where snakes are likely to be, how they behave and how to love them from afar.

Jeff Hall, reptile conservation biologist, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission

Then, what to do if you are bit by a venomous snake? Our guest today says first, stay calm, and then seek medical care.

The number of deaths associated with snake bites in the U.S. is relatively low, in part because of access to anti-venom — but the treatment is expensive. Dr. Charles Gerardo is working on a cheaper, more accessible way to treat snake bite. He talks with co-host Jeff Tiberii about how to respond to a snake bite now – and how that treatment might change in the future.

Charles J. Gerardo, MD, MHS, Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine and Professor, Emergency Medicine & Global Health, Duke University

This encore edition of Due South originally aired in April 2024.

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Leoneda Inge

Leoneda Inge is the co-host of WUNC's "Due South." Leoneda has been a radio journalist for more than 30 years, spending most of her career at WUNC as the Race and Southern Culture reporter. Leoneda’s work includes stories of race, slavery, memory and monuments. She has won "Gracie" awards, an Alfred I. duPont Award and several awards from the Radio, Television, Digital News Association (RTDNA). In 2017, Leoneda was named "Journalist of Distinction" by the National Association of Black Journalists.

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Jeff Tiberii

Jeff Tiberii is the co-host of WUNC's "Due South." Jeff joined WUNC in 2011. During his 20 years in public radio, he was Morning Edition Host at WFDD and WUNC’s Greensboro Bureau Chief and later, the Capitol Bureau Chief. Jeff has covered state and federal politics, produced the radio documentary “Right Turn,” launched a podcast, and was named North Carolina Radio Reporter of the Year four times.

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Rachel McCarthy

Rachel McCarthy is a producer for "Due South." She previously worked at WUNC as a producer for "The Story with Dick Gordon." More recently, Rachel was podcast managing editor at Capitol Broadcasting Company where she developed narrative series and edited a daily podcast. She also worked at "The Double Shift" podcast as supervising producer. Rachel learned about audio storytelling at the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies. Prior to working in audio journalism, she was a research assistant at the Aspen Institute in Washington, DC.

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