A homeowner who fumbled through his wardrobe to find a shirt on the weekend, had no idea he’d been flirting with danger until hours later when he saw something moving along the hangers.
“They had heard some noises during the day but didn’t really look into it. Then later they saw a large tiger snake tangled up, hanging over the clothes,” snake catcher Scott Smith from North West Snake Catchers told Yahoo News.
“They had birds nesting in their roof but they stopped hearing them that day. I reckon maybe he’s gone up for a feed and found a nice place to digest his food,” Smith speculated.
The late-night discovery on Sunday took place in Nook, a rural town in Tasmania’s north, and while it was Smith’s colleague Damien who attended the rescue, he revealed he’d recently rescued another tiger snake from a property nearby.
“Only about six weeks ago we got a phone call from a young guy that got up, went to make a coffee, came back to his bedroom and a tiger snake came out from under his pillow… it’s quite unique,” he said of the frightening encounter.
The team has rescued two ‘dangerous’ tiger snakes in the last six weeks. Source: Supplied & Facebook/North West Snake Catchers
Tiger snakes are ‘extremely deadly’ but only few recorded fatalities
Tiger snakes are “the fifth most venomous snakes in the world” and their venom packs a serious punch for humans.
“The cocktail of venom is lethal,” Smith explained. “They’re quite a defensive snake, they hold their ground… and it can be extremely deadly. But like most snakes, they want to just be left alone to do their thing.”
Tiger snakes have a fierce reputation due to their demeanour and potent venom, but many Aussies will never encounter one due to the snake’s impressive ability to adapt to some of the most inhospitable environments in the country.
The species accounts for an estimated 17 per cent of snake bites in Australia with four official deaths recored.
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