Two hikers who were cruising the shores of Batiquitos Lagoon in the shadow of the Four Season’s Aviara spotted a five-foot long “Burmese python” today, according to a story in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Troy Keenan (pictured right), a volunteer for the Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation, was working in the foundation’s nature center at the west end of the lagoon when the hikers reported their find. . . “I kind of tiptoed into the pickle weed and saw it stretched out,” Keenan said. He grabbed the snake’s tail, put his baseball cap over its head and grabbed the reptile behind its neck. In a few moments, the python was in a trash bag and animal control was on its way. . . “It got my adrenaline up, let’s put it that way,” he said.
Good thing they got it when they did as Burmese pythons will eat anything and can live almost anywhere. Ever heard the story from the Florida Everglades about the 13 foot python that tried to eat a six foot long alligator? It didn’t go well for either animal.
[Editors’ Note: As a commenter has pointed out, the snake in the above photograph is a boa constrictor and not the much more dangerous “burmese python” as reported by the Union-Tribune.]
[Link: San Diego Union-Tribune]
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Anyone with even basic snake knowledge would know that snake is a common Boa, NOT a Burmese Python. And further more, those types of snakes would never survive long term here in San Diego. Our news channels and “experts” should actually take 5 seconds to verify their stories, and not buy in to the stupid media hype of Pythons. However, I absolutely agree that any animal like that should never be released into the wild. Then again, feral cats (yes, house cats) do more damage to native wildlife than anything else. But that’s not a headline grabbing story, is it?