Unwelcome visitor

[billd766]

I am not sure where to put this.

I live in rural Khampaeng Phet and had an unwelcome visitor this afternoon.

Snake at the house

We had an unwelcome visitor at the house this afternoon. I was having my post lunch nap when my son woke me up to tell me that there was a snake. I put my shorts on and came down to find the snake sitting on the window frame, fortunately it was outside on the front window.

My courageous wife was stand at the back of the house ready to do the 100 metre sprint in less than 10 seconds so I, the man of the house at 71, had to get a snake removal kit.

This consisted of me, a pair of shorts and sandals, ( dressed for the task in hand), a piece of ¾ inch blue plastic water pipe about a metre long and a trowek on a long handle to chop the snakes head off.

I flicked the snake off the window and it made its merry way along the front of the house and up the side. It twisted its way in and out of an old bamboo ladder so I couldn't get to it easily and went around the corner and up into my motor bike.

I saw a can of bug spray and go that and sprayed the bike to no avail and my son then told me it came out of the bike before I got the spray, went around the wheelbarrow and disappeared.

Honours were even as I didn't really want to kill it and it wanted to get away from the guy with a big stick and a can of bug spray.

From what I remember of it, it seemed to look like this and was around 60 or 70cm long though it didn't stay around to be measured.

The national park is 300 metres away at the end of the land so it could have come from there. We have had them here before but not that often. I have seen where some snakes have shed their skin and that was over a metre long.

http://www.siam-info.com/english/snales_common.html

Picture: J. Bulian

[Trimeresurus] Cryptelytrops albolabris
(White-lipped Pit Viper)

Thai: (ngu khiau hang mei tong loeng)

Length: 75 cm - male, 104 cm - female

Distribution: Throughout Thailand

Behaviour/habitat:
The White-lipped Pit Viper is a very adaptable snake which can be found in wooden and bushy open areas up to 500 meters. It is often found near human settlements. It prefers to stay near to the water. The snake is nocturnal and in search for food (rodents, frogs, lizards, birds) they also move on the ground at night. The Pit Viper strikes quickly and accidents with humans happen frequently. White-lipped Pit Vipers mate in Thailand in September and October. The females give birth up to 16 offspring, which are born in a membrane which the babies break open just after birth. The juveniles have the same coloration as the adults

Note:
A normal person cannot tell the difference between the green Pit Vipers. The following Pit Vipers, present in Thailand, have a green colour:

• Cryptelytrops (Trimeresurus) albolabris (White-lipped Pit Viper)

• Viridovipera (Trimeresurus) gumprechti (Gumprecht's Pit Viper)

• Parias (Trimeresurus) hageni Hagen's Pit Viper

• Cryptelytrops (Trimeresurus) macrops (Large-eyed Pit Viper)

• Popeia (Trimeresurus) popeiorum popeiorum (Popes Pit Viper)

• Popeia (Trimeresurus) fucatus *in the works from MALHOTRA & THORPE (2004) not yet entered

• MALHOTRA & THORPE follows, entered here under the name Popeia

• Parias (Trimeresurus) sumatranus (Sumatra Pit Viper)

• Viridovipera (Trimeresurus) vogeli (Bird Pit Viper)

• Cryptelytrops cardamomensis (Cardamom Mountains Green Pitviper)

There is a serum against all green Pit Vipers available in Thailand. Bites are very painful but do not usually end fatally. A bad bite can lead to necrosis.

[tw25rw]

If it was on your windowsill and ran off in a hurry, it wasn't a pit viper. Probably a tree snake of some kind.

[Mosha]

My money is on a Red Tailed Green Rat Snake. Reaches about 8' long. Can be bad tempered, and will bite if irritated. Eats bats, birds among other animals.

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[malt25]

Glad you put your shorts on before going into battle.

[Thongkorn]

My Neibour had a cobra in his house last night about 8 30.luckly the Thai guy across the street catches them to eat.

[D3030]

Every year for the past 10... A snake either got in the house, or was close enough.. To KILL..

Not by me, but someone with a stick or one of the dogs.

It could have had 3 heads and wings.

Snakes get the death sentence at my house...

[Tonto21]

We, my wife and I see snakes in our garden on a regular basic and every now and then we get one in the house, luckily all those that have got inside the house have been non venomous.

I'm not a great lover of snakes but, I will not kill them unless I have no option, IE.... A venomous snake that just keep turning up around the house, non venomous snakes are welcome.

This guy lives in our garden; 'Golden Tree Snake' ........ This shot was taken a few weeks ago, I was out gardening and saw him having his 'frog' breakfast.

Yesterday...........This bad boy, (2 meter Cora) was trying to get a frog that had gone to ground in the wooden pond wall, my wife made a noise and he dived into the wooden wall, I waited most the day hopping to get some better photos of him.... No such luck, he may well still be in there.

[tonray]

Glad you put your shorts on before going into battle.

At least that way you are certain which snake the wife is running from....ha ha

[billd766]

If it was on your windowsill and ran off in a hurry, it wasn't a pit viper. Probably a tree snake of some kind.

I am going on what I and my son saw and looked up online.

It could well have been a tree snake for all I know as we weren't exchanging greetings or business cards.

Once he had gone I was happy.

[billd766]

Glad you put your shorts on before going into battle.

I had thought about putting on my jeans and steel toe capped rubber boots but then I thought, if I do and that little runs up inside the leg of my jeans on into my boots it won't be easy to get it out and there is nobody else around other than women and kids. I binned that idea.

[andrew55]

Get someone else to deal with it I reckon. Stand on the table and scream a lot generally wakes a volunteer.

Same with bees, wasps, centipedes, scorpions, soi dogs that are frothing at the mouth more than I'm comfortable with... and especially the evil tokay. Don't even start me on leeches... they remind me of the ex.

[tw25rw]

If it was on your windowsill and ran off in a hurry, it wasn't a pit viper. Probably a tree snake of some kind.

I am going on what I and my son saw and looked up online.

It could well have been a tree snake for all I know as we weren't exchanging greetings or business cards.

Once he had gone I was happy.

The thing that makes pit vipers so dangerous, apart from the venom, is the fact that they don't try to escape. They stay still and rely on camouflage. They also live on the ground and tend not to climb.