NEWS.COM.AU (Sydney, Australia) 15 October 13 So this is how they got on the plane? Snake slithers into Virgin Australia Village lift (Matt Young)
So this is how those snakes got on that plane.
A keelback, otherwise known as a freshwater snake, was spotted slithering in the lifts of the Virgin Australia Village in Brisbane on the weekend, to the surprise of facilities workers.
An internal email sent to news.com.au reveals it is unknown how the snake found its way inside the lift, but warned employees to keep watch for further escapades.
"As you are more than likely all aware we had an instance over the weekend with a snake entering into one of the lifts on the site," it reads.
"Additionally the Village site and perimeter area will be further inspected this week by a snake specialist as a precautionary measure due to the early onset seasonal heat and dry conditions."
One employee was so chuffed he tweeted, "You know why I LOVE #Australia because a normal day at the office in the lift with my friend the SNAKE."
The post, along with the picture, was later deleted.
The snake was caught by a professional handler on Sunday and was released into a national park north of Brisbane yesterday.
"It is fortunate that Virgin was able to get a professional snake catcher onsite so promptly to identify and safely remove the animal," Jason Hainke from Wild Life Sydney Zoo told news.com.au.
"It is also very lucky the snake catcher was able to identify it as a Keelback snake, which is non-venomous, as the snake bears a striking resemblance to the Rough-Scaled Snake; a species which also lives in the same environment and can deliver a potentially fatal bite.
"This event only serves to highlight how critical it is that only professionals deal with these situations as this occasion could have potentially ended very badly".
Keelback's are indeed non-venomous snakes that are usually found in "coastal areas of Northern Australia from northern New South Wales to the Kimberley, Western Australia", writes the Queensland Museum.
It can be found in "well watered situations along creeks and in swamps" but is also found in suburban gardens.
Its diet consists of frogs, fish, reptile eggs mammals and "is one of the few Australian vertebrates to prey successfully on the introduced Cane Toad". It has been nicknamed the "Toad Terminator".
"However, attempts by this snake to eat large toads sometimes have fatal consequences for the snake," writes the Queensland Museum.
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