Two black mambas under the same bed in the same house a week apart. This was the “extraordinary” experience that confronted local herpetologist Nick Evans on a call-out to Cato Ridge on Thursday.
“Incredibly, these are two different snakes, behind the same brick, under the same bed ‒ just one week apart,” Evans says.
Evans received a phone call from a man in Cato Ridge who sounded rather panicked.
“He was explaining there was a black mamba at his house. Then he said ‘Remember the one from last week? Same house, same bed’. I couldn't believe it,” said Evans.
“I arrived, and was met by a few dogs, and I was happy to see my friend from last week. He pointed out where the snake was. Sure enough, it was exactly where the other one was.
“I tried my same trick of moving the bed away from the wall slightly, and grabbing it from above. It didn’t work too well. I pulled the mamba up gently, but it started twisting and I could see I was going to hurt it, so I let go. It moved along the wall, and I grabbed it further along at the opposite corner of the bed,” he said.
This week’s mamba is slightly smaller than last week’s 2.2m specimen.
“Why they both went there, I’m not sure. It isn’t mating season... although nature can be full of surprises. Maybe it’s just coincidental.”
Evans said that while the family had lived in the house for three years, last week's mamba was the first they had seen. “This surprised me, as they live on the edge of a vast patch of bush.”
Reactions on Evans’s Facebook page saw most wanting to move house immediately. One even suggested it gave a new meaning to “breakfast in bed”.
“I don’t think that bed will be occupied for a while,” Evans said.
The Independent on Saturday