Facebook snake photo competition: incredible images of Hong Kong snakes shot by winners and finalists

Hong Kong has more than 50 snake species, including venomous cobras, vipers and kraits, and they have become an object of curiosity for the city’s nature lovers

The Hong Kong Snakes Facebook group’s annual photography contest attracted more than 2,000 entries. The winners have just been announced

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Daphne Wong’s photo of a greater green snake took third place in the 2020 Hong Kong Snakes Facebook group photography competition. Photo: Daphne Wong

Published: 4:15pm, 5 Jan 2021Updated: 4:15pm, 5 Jan 2021

Hong Kong has a rich biodiversity, including more than 50 species of snake, and eight of the ones that live on land are deadly.

Snake bites in Hong Kong are rare, however, and according to the city’s Hospital Authority, there are about 100 snake bites a year, while the last recorded death from one was more than 20 years ago.

Snakes have become creatures of curiosity for many of the city’s nature lovers, and in 2017, the Hong Kong Snakes Facebook page was established for members of the public to share images and information. It has more than 11,000 members, and last week it announced the winners of its annual photography competition for 2020, which attracted more than 2,000 posts.

The photo that was voted the overall winner was of a king cobra, taken by Adam Francis, while Cliffcher Lucas Eustaquio’s image of a common rat snake came second. Daphne Wong placed third with a picture of a greater green snake. Francis says of his winning photo: “This was a very special snake, a subadult king cobra that had just been rescued, so I had a chance to photograph it before its release.”

Below is a selection of photos from the winners and finalists.

Adam Francis won the competition with this hypnotic picture of a king cobra. Photo: Adam Francis

Cliffcher Lucas Eustaquio’s image of a common rat snake took second place. Photo: Cliffcher Lucas Eustaquio