Animal

A KwaZulu-Natal snake catcher suggests you refrain from eating a python: Here's why


Snake catcher Nick Evans.


Snake catcher Nick Evans.

  • KZN snake catcher Nick Evans saved a python after a cattle herder was planning to have it for lunch.
  • When the herder caught the snake, he realised there were eggs in the hole the snake had been lying.
  • The snake was taken to the Dangerous Creatures at Ushaka.

KwaZulu-Natal snake catcher Nick Evans saved a 3m python after a cattle herder was apparently planning to have it for lunch.

Evans received a call on Saturday from a resident in Osindiswini, reporting the cow herder’s intentions of eating the snake.

“He told me that a cattle herder had captured a large python the day before, with the initial intention of eating it,” Evans said.

“However, the environmentally-friendly resident had managed to convince him otherwise, and I was called to collect,” he added.

He said that it is illegal to eat snakes, but it is not uncommon for some people to eat pythons. 

snake

The python that Nick Evans caught.

According to Evans, when the herder caught the snake, he realised there were eggs in the hole the snake had been lying. When the snake catcher arrived in Osindiswini, the herder had hidden the snake in a bucket in the bush.

Bowels

“The snake had emptied its bowels at some point, and it was now sitting in that, freezing,” Evans said. “I pulled the filthy snake out,” he added.

He said the snake appeared to be underweight. The snake was taken to the Dangerous Creatures at Ushaka, where it will receive treatment and food.

Evans said the eggs had already hatched. “I am certain most of the babies had dispersed, and there were just a few of the babies left,” he added.

Evans didn’t deny nor confirm the effects of eating snakes, but said that wild snakes often have parasites. “I’ve also seen some horrible stuff come out of pythons when they empty their bowels.

“I would never eat one, nor recommend it, and not just because I like them alive,” he said.



READ SOURCE

Leave a Reply

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.