Wildlife experts are warning of a growing number of jungle snakes on the loose across Britain, as they are dumped by people who bought them as pets and can no longer cope with their demands.
A 2.4-metre boa constrictor was found and taken to a wildlife hospital in Salisbury on Thursday, left in a plastic container with a note reading 'warning: live snake'.
"It took two people to lift it. It was huge - the thickness of a thigh," said wildlife care supervisor Marilyn Korkis.
The snake was reportedly dehydrated but otherwise in good condition.
Earlier in the week, a 1.8-metre anaconda was also found in Farnborough by soldiers on a training exercise, and a woman in Worcester was bitten by what is believed to have been an escaped exotic pet snake.
RSPCA animal welfare officer Peter Yarde said exotic pets end up in their care as people encounter difficulties in caring for the creatures, or the novelty wears off.
He warned they have trouble surviving in the British countryside, and that they are illegal to release as they pose a risk as an invasive species.
Newshub.
