TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A large, highly venomous Taiwanese krait, also known as the many-banded krait, made its way into a betel nut shop, frightening the saleswoman who was working in the stall at the time.
As the summer temperatures heat up, incidents in which venomous snakes have come in close contact with humans have been on the rise as the reptiles seek a cool place to escape the hot weather by entering residences or offices. Within the past few days, there have been two incidents in which Taiwanese kraits had to be removed by a snake catcher in Nantou County.
A few days ago, a Taiwanese krait snuck past the entrance of a betel nut shop on Dongmin Road in Nantou City and slithered to a back room. When the betel nut saleswoman entered the room, she saw what she first thought was a coiled piece of rope on the floor.
Snake found coiled up in betel nut shop. (Huang Ming-tzu photo)
However, upon closer inspection, she screamed when she realized that it was a Taiwanese krait. The shopkeeper then called snake catcher Huang Ming-tzu (黃明賜) to deal with the situation.
When Huang arrived with his team, he used a bamboo pole to attract the attention of the serpent. He then used the tip of the pole to pin the snake's head to the ground.
Huang then grabbed the head with his hand, carefully placed the snake in a bag, and tied it tightly. According to Huang, the snake is a male about 140 centimeters in length and weighs more than 2 kilograms.
Female betel nut stand employee who spotted the snake. (Huang Ming-tzu photo)
Later, Huang also helped a farmer in Zhongliao Township capture another Taiwanese krait that had been found in his garden. Huang said that the second snake is a female that is about 10 cm longer and weighs 2 to 3 kg more.
Huang pointed out that the status of three types of venomous snakes, the Taiwanese krait, cobra, and Taiwan habu has been changed from a protected species to general wildlife status in January 2019. However, he said that they are still protected by the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法), and they cannot be hunted or slaughtered arbitrarily.
People who break the law could face fines of between NT$60,000 and NT$300,000. If a person encounters a snake in their home, Huang asked them not to beat or kill the snake and instead contact the fire department to remove the creature.
Taiwanese krait caught in farmer's garden. (Huang Ming-tzu photo)
