Two snakes captured inside the bedroom after entering through the window in KZN
Two snakes were captured in the bedroom at Thompson Avenue in Lotusville, KwaZulu-Natal.
Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) said it received a call for assistance after the homeowner spotted one snake in his bedroom on Saturday.
“While on route, reaction officers received an update that a second snake was spotted,” said Rusa.
Rusa added that a member who went to the scene, Nkosinathi Ndaba, identified the reptiles as non-venomous Natal Bush Snakes.
“They were safely captured and relocated. It is believed that they entered the house through an open window,” explained Rusa.
Last month, a Mozambique spitting cobra measuring approximately 1.2 metres was captured on a property in Hilltop, Verulam.
Ndaba was sent to the property after the snake was discovered under a bed in an outbuilding.
On arrival, Ndaba identified the snake as a highly venomous Mozambique spitting cobra.
The species is regarded as one of the most dangerous snakes in Africa due to its cytotoxic venom.
“Officer Ndaba safely captured and relocated the snake,” Rusa said.
On the same day, Durban snake rescuer Nick Evans rescued a large adult herald snake.
Evans said the snake was described as a black mamba. A common mistake due to their colouration.
“Although they are tiny in comparison to mambas, and will often stand their ground and strike, to scare you off. A mamba will flee,” Evans said.
He said that when they arrived at the home in Dawncliffe, they found the gardener had the suspected mamba in a bag, and knew it was almost certainly a herald.
An untrained person putting a mamba in a bag will likely get a bite. It has already happened once this year, Evans said.
“Sure enough, it was a herald. An adult, which must have enjoyed a toad throughout the night.
“This specimen has a bit of an orange ‘lip’. Some have brighter coloured ‘lips’, some are very plain, basically white,” Evans described.
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