The City of Ekurhuleni has warned communities to be on the look out for snakes as they slither out of hibernation.
According to a statement, snakes are on the prowl in search of food around this time of the year.
“Snake season starts in the middle of August until late May. This is the period when a number of snakes, harmful and harmless, get out of hiding. Snakes such as the puff adder and rinkhals are extremely dangerous, with the puff adder known to be instinctive, slow in pace and quick to sense danger.
“The rinkhals or ring-necked cobra is a fast-moving multi-feeder, which is good at faking death. It is easily identified by the two white stripes that are visible across its neck when it spreads its hood,” the city said.
It has also cautioned pet owners to be on high alert and to keep an eye on their pets as they may fall prey to snakes.
“On the same note, while the community is cautioned to be vigilant against the harmful snakes, there are also snakes that are harmless to humans, such as the brown house snake, Arora, olive house snake and red-lipped snake that are likely to be found in backyard gardens searching for food like rodents.”
The city added that due to their harmlessness and less defensive nature, these species tended to be easily killed or captured as pets, a practice that is illegal and punishable if you do not have a permit.