Snakes taking to the suburbs!

Tuesday, September 15, 2009 . Page 24

After the recent rains in the city, snakes are being founding increasing numbers in housing complexes. During the last three days, a PAWS-Mumbai team rescued seven snakes from residential areas of Mulund, Bhandup, Kanjur Marg, and the BARC Colony. Interestingly, most of the rescued snakes were non-venomous, like rat snakes, common wolf snakes, cat snakes and sand boas. According to wildlife experts, the city has witnessed major habitat destruction, which has resulted in animals like snakes and even at times, leopards, entering residential area located on the city’s outskirts. This monsoon, the PAWS team alone has rescued more than a hundred snakes from various housing localities in the suburbs.

According to Sunish Subramanian, founder of PAWS-Mumbai, “Since the last few years there has been an increase in the number of snake sightings in residential areas, especially in and around newly-constructed buildings.”

Subramanian however, said one reason why snakes are sighted in monsoons so frequently is that they breed some time just before the monsoon. “Their burrows or other dwelling places often get flooded forcing them to come out in the open. That is why so many baby snakes are also seen around this time.”

Narayan Rajpal, a Mulund resident, said “Our neighborhood has a lot of construction activity going on and we keep sighting snakes every other day, especially during the heavy rains.”

So as to avoid a shock:

Remove all piles of debris or garbage and trim unkempt bushes, as these are the most likely hiding places for snakes.

Fix nets on windows all over the house including the washrooms, and always keep the doors closed.

Keep pet birds away from windows and trim tree branches that touch or come to close to the windows.

Fill up all the rat holes in the compounds.