Yes. My dad did it after seeing me handle it, even after I told him it was a harmless garden snake, and even after I told him they help control pests. This DeKay’s brown snake spent its final moments brutally battered by a shovel, simply because its venomous cousin was a snake.
Another of my favorite, often misunderstood animals is the spider:
Isn’t it beautiful? Look at that charming mark. This is a harmless garden spider, but unfortunately, it was hit with newspapers and shoes along with other spiders, despite its help in controlling pests like the snake.
The most misunderstood animals are those considered dangerous but are actually useful. Most spiders and snakes are not poisonous (or at least not to the point of being deadly), and these useful animals don’t deserve to be killed out of generalization.