My first wild snake handling encounter

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 So today was kinda cool. It had been years without seeing any kind of the infamous reptile. A snake. Am not Voldemort who dearly loves snake, but I am fascinated by them and respect then. Anyway, today I was able to handle one which was captured by a guide yesterday at this safari area i mentioned in my last article. He kept it overnight at his place so that we could get to study it together. 

It's totally safe to say, snakes are really cool. I don't even understand why we hate these creatures. The snake that we got was a herald snake. Below is a bit of information about it copied from African Snakebite Institute webpage. I'll also include the link


Herald or Red-lipped Snake

Full Name: Herald or Red-lipped Snake (Crotaphopeltis hotamboeia)

Other Names: Rooilip of Heraldslang

Classification: MILDLY VENOMOUS

Map indicating the distribution of the Herald Snake in Southern Africa.

A nocturnal snake that frequents suburban gardens, especially those with water features. It is a toad specialist and often eats toads that look far too large to swallow.

The Herald snake is usually greyish to olive-grey in colour but some individuals are quite dark. The head is always darker than the body and there may be white speckles on the body. In parts of the range the upper lip is bright red, orange or yellowish.

When threatened this snake puts up quite a show, drawing the head back into a striking position with the mouth agape and the head flattened to expose the brightly coloured lips. It is mildly venomous and poses no threat to humans or domestic animals.

The presence of this snake was first announced in the Herald newspaper in the Eastern Cape, hence the common name.

https://www.africansnakebiteinstitute.com/snake/herald-or-red-lipped-snake/



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