Community & Business
19 September, 2024
Snake season sneaks up again
AS winter begins to fade and the spring heat starts to liven up the wildlife, it’s imperative that locals be aware of the prevalence of snakes in the Mareeba area.
Local reptile removalist Jay Everding from Close Encounters Reptile Removals says he has caught around 20 snakes in the past few weeks alone.
“They’re starting to come out this time of year because it’s warming up,” Jay said.
The hot and dry environment that encompasses Mareeba makes it an ideal area for snakes to thrive and is a “prime area for breeding”.
“Breeding season in Queensland is generally between September and October.
“Taipans, eastern browns and pythons love the heat, and Mareeba is very ideal for them.
“I usually find Taipans around water, especially in and around the wetlands out near St Stephens.
“Eastern browns and pythons are generally found all over the place,” Jay said.
In the Far North there are “at least 15” species of venomous snakes, and around the Mareeba area the most dangerous include the eastern brown snake and the coastal taipan, which are the second and third most venomous species behind the inland taipan.
“Eastern browns and tree snakes are the main two I catch on basically a daily basis but the eastern browns are definitely number one.”
Jay urges people who aren’t educated on snakes to not go near them and to definitely not try to handle them, and that parents should educate their kids on what to do when they see a snake, to reduce the risk of getting bitten.
“That main reason you shouldn’t handle them is obviously you could get bitten.
“If you don’t know what you’re doing and try to pick them up from the tail they can spin around very quickly and bite you on the arm or the leg.
“Or you can mistake the snake. I’ve gone to someone’s house before and they said they had caught a python, but it was actually a brown, and they were holding it and everything.
“If you get bitten and you don’t realise what snake it is, it can kill you.
“But not just that, it’s like any profession, you leave it up to the experts.
“Teach your kids about snakes. Teach them to stand back and not play around with them, don’t poke or throw things at them.
“If they see a snake, they should go to their parents straight away to let them know and parents should then ring a snake catcher,” Jay said.
Keeping your property as tidy as possible can greatly reduce the risk of attracting snakes.
“You’ve got to try and keep your property tidy, if you have things in your yard or house that attract rodents or lizards, you’re also going to attract snakes.
“Piles of stuff like rubbish, corrugated iron, palm fronds or roofing materials are usually good spots for a snake to be.
“If you see a snake on your property but aren’t sure if it’s still there or not, ring a snake catcher and we can go to the property and have a look around to try find it.
“If you do see it try to keep an eye on it from a safe distance of at least three to five metres, where you feel safe and out of its range.
“When people try to poke or throw things at them to move them along, that’s when accidents normally happen,” he said.
Jay’s passion is helping animals live a full life and never kills any snakes unless absolutely necessary.
After becoming familiar with the “a good snake is a dead snake” mentality of a lot of locals, Jay has tried to minimise people killing them by finding a fair price that people would be inclined to pay for a removal.
He charges $60 for all removals of all snakes and encourages people to call him instead of killing the snake because “not every snake is a bad snake”.
Find Jay at Close Encounters Reptile Removals on Facebook, contact him on 0449 729 648 or via email at Jay.close.encounters@gmail.com
