SRINAGAR A four foot long Rat Snake which sneaked into a school in Central Kashmir sparked panic among students Saturday.
The snake was later rescued by Wildlife SOS from the school in Mansabal, located in the Ganderbal District. The snake is currently under observation and will soon be released back into its natural habitat, the group said in a statement to the Kashmir Observer.
It turned out to be quite a shocking day for students and staff at a private school in Mansabal as they found an unexpected visitor in their midst. A nearly four-foot long rat snake was spotted wandering in the school garden, creating quite the stir!, eyewitnesses said. Fearing for the safety of the children, the principal reported the incident to the Wildlife SOS team operating out of Jammu & Kashmir.
Aaliya Mir from the wildlife conservation NGO rushed to the location to carry out the rescue operation. Having had years of experience rescuing snakes and other reptiles, she carefully transferred the snake into a transport carrier, much to everyones relief. Following the successful rescue operation, the students and staff were given a snake awareness talk to sensitize them towards these largely misunderstood reptiles, Wildlife SOS said.
Though harmless, rat snakes are swift and easily excitable and may bite if threatened. Therefore, we need to exercise caution while carrying out such rescues. The snake will be released back into its natural habitat soon. We even scanned the entire neighbourhood on the request of the school authorities who fear that there are more snakes in the area, she said.
Rat snakes (Ptyas mucosa), also known as the Oriental rat snakes are a highly adaptable species and are commonly found in urban areas. They often wander into the human habitation due to depletion of natural prey base. However, due to their resemblance to cobras, this species is often misidentified as the highly venomous snake and is met with hostility and fear.
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