As if the invasive constrictors in the glades weren't bad enough, now we have a new threat. An African Green Mamba has bitten a Comcast cable guy outside a Hollywood condo where he was working. Here is a link to the article; Poisonous African snake bites man in Hollywood, officials say This is VERY scary insofar as we have a snake that looks nearly identical to the Mamba. The non poisonous Rough Green Snake. I have caught a hundred of these snakes over the years.. just grab them and not really cared if I was bit or not.. it doesn't really hurt, more like a lizard bite that bleeds a little because they are small mouthed.. freaks out the tourists and girls. I will never again feel the same about them. Here is a pair of comparative pictures, the Green Snake is nearly invisible if it is in foliage the same color, when it ventures into contrasting foliage, it really stands out.. thus the many personal captures. Green Mamba; Rough Green Snake; They are approximately the same size and enough alike to be indistinguishable until in ones hand.. or bitten. The fangs; I am glad they are confident this is a single reptile, to have these things breeding here would be a disaster. It is a wonder to me that they had the proper antivenom on hand... this is a lucky man. I hope they look for this reptile until they find it and remove it.
Well you know humans are stupid herding creatures in mass and couple that with fear and ignorance and those little snakes better evolve a new color right quick.
Holy crap Marty, one of my best buddies lives on Filmore one block over, I will be down there for the Buc game in November, might now have to buy me some cowboy boots. Or maybe I will just stay out of his backyard instead.
Marty, I lived on Taylor St back in '70. I can't remember the street no. tho'. Thank God all I ever had to worry about were the darn sand fleas.
Boots wouldn't likely help, they are arboreal.. the cable guy got tagged in the arm as he leaned on a palm tree.
Marty...the mamba bit a Comcast Cable guy, he was only doing what anyone who had Comcast wished they could do but never had the guts. I hope the snake was treated for rabies afterwards....
When I lived in Hollywood, I lived on Taft Street and 40th Avenue. Didn't see anything but those ugly little lizards.
A freakin' mamba! This reminds of the jerk who also let a little kid handle a loaded uzi. If they're ever able to track the you-know-what-head down, they need to make an example of him/her.
That is scary. Why would anyone want to buy a freaking mamba in the first place? That guy is very lucky to be alive. Green mambas are deadly. If it was a pair of snakes that got released, Florida will have a new 'deadliest snake' very soon. As for the deadliest now, its the coral snake but its fangs are in the back of its head. Its venom is among the deadliest in the world, but fatalities are rare because of the location of its fangs. Also, its pretty easy to tell a coral snake from a king snake. Not the case with the mambas and rough green snakes. I used to be a licensed venomous snake handler, but even I wouldn't try to catch a mamba. Their venom is almost as deadly as a coral snake, but their fangs are in the front of their mouth. Mambas are also much faster than coral snakes.
I've always loved the thought of hunting in Africa but 3 things have kept me from doing so, MONEY and those two dang snakes, the Green and Black Mamba. Of course without a LOT of the first there is no need to worry about the other two, or I thought so until I read this!
ok, the shopping.com add i am seeing as i scroll this page says; maybe whoever had the snake and set it free bought it off an ad on thephins.com.
i keed... seriously though, that is bad news. if there is one, there is most likely more than one. glad i assume that ALL snakes are poisonous and generally avoid them like the plague.
Holy crap. I don't think they are quite as bad as the black mamba but those things are long and fast. When Steve Irwin takes extra precaution with a snake you know its dangerous. I hope this isn't a widespread thing.
