New Delhi (NVI): A five-foot-long Indian Rock Python was rescued by Wildlife SOS after it was spotted at the bus stop outside Saket metro station. The python was later safely released into the wild.
The python, which was spotted outside the metro station at exit gate number 1 in south Delhi, startled a handful of onlookers.
It was first spotted by a passer-by who noticed the noticed the large reptile sidle underneath the foot-over bridge from a neighbouring culvert.
The incident was immediately was reported to the Wildlife SOS 24×7 emergency helpline following which a team of two rescuers was dispatched to the location.
“Donning protective gear and rescue equipment, the team proceeded to efficiently extricate the python from the narrow space under the foot-foot-over bridge,” the non-profit wildlife rescue organisation said in a statement.
With the monsoons flushing out snakes from their burrowed holes and shelters, the Wildlife SOS helpline is flooded with “distress calls” about snake sightings across Delhi NCR, it added.
Kartick Satyanarayan, CEO & Co-founder of Wildlife SOS, that although non-venomous, a python’s bite can be injurious, so one has to be careful while carrying out such rescue operations. “We have professionally trained rescuers who are experienced in handling snake rescues. Pythons need large undisturbed spaces to move around – if we encroach on
their habitats, we really mustn’t be surprised if they do the same,” he said.
In the past week, the Rapid Response Team has also rescued a python that was stuck high up on a tree branch in Sangam Vihar, a rat snake from the Post Graduate Men’s Hostel at the Delhi University North campus and a monitor lizard from a house in Gurgaon, Wildlife SOS said in a release.
“We get maximum number of calls about reptile sightings in the monsoon season. From cobras and pythons to rat snakes and sand boas, the Rapid Response Unit has been kept busy on their toes, the past month,” said Wasim Akram, Deputy Director – Special Projects, Wildlife SOS.
The Indian Rock Python is a large non-venomous python species that can length out to as long as 20-ft! Pythons are often misidentified due to their resemblance to the venomous Russell’s viper and consequently met with hostility. Wildlife SOS is consistently working towards changing people’s attitude and sensitizing the public to the presence of urban
wildlife and how we can help keep the conflict at a minimum.
-ARK
