Here is another snake story coming to you from the boonies of Thailand. Let me set the scene. Early every morning I grab a cup of coffee and head to my office to surf the net, answer emails and edit an upcoming book. This time of the day is one of my favorites periods and is generally quite except for the roosters waking up. And for a couple of hours, I’m left in solitude.
My wife (Dee) likes to sleep in, sometimes until 8am. However, just the other day, Dee was up at 7am and I saw her through the window walking towards the office with a sad look. After years of being married, I instantly knew something was amiss.
Dee: Where is Leo?
Me: In the bird house?
Dee: She is not there.
Leo is our pet parrot. We have had her (if it is a her) for several years after one of the locals got tired of her and donated the bird to us. I have no idea why it has the name Leo nor do I actually know what kind of parrot it is. But what I did know, is that Leo was missing. That is her below.
I soon spotted the problem inside the bird house. I’m by no means a herpetologist but I think the culprit was a juvenile Burmese Python. They tend to be seen more during the rainy season and are active at night and twilight. Its diet consists primarily of birds and mammals. The snake uses its sharp, rearward-pointing teeth to seize its prey, then wraps its body around contracting its muscles, killing the prey by constriction.
The only natural predators of the Burmese python are tigers and the King Cobra. It was time to call the Snake-Busters.
This local team of emergency responders capture unwanted varmints and also operate an ambulance service. They have been to our place several times simply because of venomous snakes like Cobras and Kraits. Today’s catch was a juvenile python. And sadly, we now know where Leo is…
