Startled villager finds 3 large snakes in Agra home

AGRA: Three

rat snakes

were rescued by the

Wildlife SOS

team from Ghadi Village in Agra. The snakes were found to be in good health and were released back to their natural

habitat

shortly after.


It was quite a shocking morning for Chandra Veer, a resident of Ghadi village, Agra when he discovered three large snakes coiled up on the roof of his hut. Fearing for the safety of his family, he immediately contacted the Wildlife SOS rapid response unit on their 24-hrs helpline number (9917190666).


By the time a two member rescue team arrived at the location, the reptiles had made their way to a boundary wall nearby. The team identified them as rat snakes (Ptyas mucosa), also known as the Oriental rat snake. This is a common species of non-venomous colubrid snake found in South and South-east Asia and is protected under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.


The rescue was carried out safely and the snakes were transferred into a safe transport container. Two of the rescued rat snakes were about 3.5 foot long each, while one was 5 foot long.


Baiju Raj M.V., Director of Conservation Projects Wildlife SOS said, “Rat snakes are a highly adaptable species and we believe that they had wandered into the human settlement in search of food and water. Rat snakes are harmless to human beings and they mostly feed on rodents, lizards, birds and small mammals. The rising temperatures often force snakes out of their natural habitat to find respite from the heat and exhaustion.”


Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder of Wildlife SOS, said, “Although nonvenomous, the rat snake is quick and easily excitable, and may bite if threatened, so our trained rescue team ensured that the reptile was carefully removed without cornering or alarming it too much to avoid any accidents. Wildlife SOS works hard to sensitize people to these largely misunderstood creatures and help them to co-exist in harmony.”