Updated: 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, July 17, 2007 | Posted: 11:15 a.m. Monday, July 16, 2007
HOLLY HILL, Fla. —
SLIDESHOWS: After The Capture | See The CaptureRAW VIDEO:Huge Reticulated Python In Holly Hill
Experts said the large reptile could've killed cats, dogs and maybe even children.
Vera Smith has been delivering mail around Holly Hill for years and she's seen lots of snakes.
"I found one in a mailbox," she said.
Strange News Photos (LEFT) STRANGE PHOTOSView 99 PHOTOS of Strange News But never has Vera seen anything like the huge snake discovered by barking dogs.
Experts say a reticulated python can pose a risk.
"If you're young enough or small enough, he gets coils around you, he could definitely harm you," said trapper Corey Hicks.
The trouble with measuring the reticulated python is that he wouldn't stay still enough to get an accurate measurement. The estimates showed him to be about 15 feet and he may have come from a nearby stream.
Regardless, letting him go is against the law.
"He's not indigenous to the U.S. If you had a rat snake and released him, no big deal. But some exotic animals, against the law to release them," Hicks said.
The snake is being transported to Native Village, a small private zoo in Hollywood, Fla.
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