Bhagesh Bhagwat, a snake rescuer found a three feet long cobra swallowing a plastic wrap that it might have mistaken it for a prey. The snake was rescued from a Malad household.
A snake rescuer got the shock of his life as he witnessed firsthand the adverse impact of undisposed plastic waste. Bhagesh Bhagwat, a snake rescuer found a three feet long cobra swallowing a plastic wrap that it might have mistaken it for a prey. The snake was rescued from a Malad household.
A rescuer from Spreading Awareness on Reptiles and Rehabilitation Programe (SARRP), Bhagwat rescued the snake after responding to a call from Patanwadi area in Malad. "I got the phone call around 12 am on July 24 about a snake being spotted in the false ceiling on the top floor of a ground plus one floor home in a chawl. One of the women from the home informed that she saw the tail portion hanging from the gap where the fan hangs on the roof," said Bhagwat. He said it took breaking of some part of the false ceiling that was constructed of wooden material and about one hour of frantic search to finally spot the snake.
As per Bhagwat, when he first spotted the snake from far, it was holding something in its mouth. Keeping in mind the safety of the snake, Bhagwat managed to hold its tail and brought the snake to the ground. "I was shocked that as soon as it reached the ground, it began regurgitating something from its mouth and within seconds, I realised that it had ingested a large amount of plastic wrap that it was now throwing up," he said, adding that he immediately even shot a video for documentation and awareness.
As per the rescuer, the house was infested with rats. Bhagwat even found signs of rats living in the false ceiling, however, how did the snake consume so much of plastic remains a mystery. Meanwhile, Bhagwat, after releasing the snake in its natural habitat in the wee hours of Tuesday , even carried out awareness drive for the locals, and informed them of the measures to avoid rat, and requested them dispose trash properly.
Pawan Sharma, Wildlife Warden for Thane as well as President of Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) said that the video footage should be used as an awareness tool to fight the menace of carelessly disposed plastic items. "There are increasing instances of wildlife being found with either plastic and other materials ingested or getting stuck in it," he said.
FREE AT LAST
A rescuer from Spreading Awareness on Reptiles and Rehabilitation Programme (SARRP), Bhagwat rescued the snake after responding to a call from Patanwadi
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Cobra")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}