Durban - Snake rescuer Nick Evans says a resident’s refreshing attitude to learn about wildlife including snakes was the highlight of a call out to the Luganda area, near Pinetown this week to rescue a black mamba.
Evans said in a post on his Facebook page that he was on his way to fetch something from his friend, Duncan Slabbert, on Monday when he got the call from Luganda.
He said the caller said he had seen what he was sure was a black mamba in his storeroom.
“It was a long drive, but the closer we got, the more scenic it became, a few river crossings too.
“After a stretch of bumpy road, we finally arrived, and were led to this storeroom, at the back of the house. It was rather cluttered, but mostly just on the floor.”
Evans said while he was sure the snake had escaped through a gap in the storeroom wall, residents assured him that they had kept watch and the snake was still in the room.
“After moving a few things, we got to a lawnmower. It had to be there, they so often are under lawnmowers. We stood on each side of it. Duncan lifted it up, by the handle with his left hand, and the tail appeared on my side.”
Evans said the snake became quite feisty after being grabbed.
“It went a bit mad, I must say. Not a happy snake at all! Can't blame it. But, with two of us there, it didn’t have much of a chance. We managed to pin it down, and Duncan secured the head.”
He said the snake was a 2.4m male, which had a meal in it, which was almost certainly a rat.
Evans said the highlight of the rescue was speaking with the caller.
“He had an amazing attitude. He had considered killing the snake, he’s done that in the past, thinking there’s no help where he is. But this one was a bit too big and scary for him.
“He was telling me how he has been trying to learn more about these animals, and that really gave me hope.”
Evans said he felt dejected at dealing with people with poor attitudes towards wildlife.
“So many people have no interest in learning about snakes/wildlife. Yesterday, I was having a particularly bad afternoon in dealing with people.
“But this fun adventure, along with speaking to this man, really lifted my spirits.”