DURBAN - Snake rescuer Nick Evans usually finds Mozambique spitting cobras in some weird places. A recent find at a home in Westville was no exception.
Evans said that when he and friend and research partner Cormac Price arrived at the home, they were told that a big black mamba was seen on top of a refrigerator in the garage.
Describing the room, Evans said the garage was almost empty except, for a fridge in the corner which had a few boxes on top of it and other items stored alongside it.
They cleared away the items but could not find the snace.
“We pulled the fridge back, looked in the space; still no snake.”
He said they had also seen a hole in the wall but concluded it was too small for the size of the snake that the home owner had described.
Looking in the gap between the back of the fridge and the attached grid (condenser), Price spotted the snake and alerted Evans. “I see scales,” he said.
“I shone my torch in, and saw the light brown scales of a Mozambique spitting cobra.”
Evans said his arms were covered in fresh scratches and he was concerned that the snake might spit venom on him, which may get into the open skin.
“I got my eye protection, and asked Cormac to pull it out with the tongs, and I'd pin it down without being spat at. Hopefully.”
The first attempt to catch the snake did not go according to the plan.
“From an angle, I tried prodding the snake out with a wire, and it spat, venom getting on my arm. I rinsed it off quickly, and was fine.”
Using a screwdriver, the duo loosened the condenser and Price used his tongs to grab the snake.
“As he pulled it out and got it on the ground, I pinned it down. It was a stunning specimen, 1.1m long. I find Mozambique spitting cobras in some weird places. This was another, to add to the list,” Evans said.
THE MERCURY