Mumbai: Snake stuck in glue trap for rats

MUMBAI: A venomous snake found itself in a sticky situation after it crawled onto a glue pad in Mulund (west) on Wednesday morning. The baby Russel’s Viper was weaned away after a bit of struggle.
The glue pad had been kept outside a shopping mall to trap rodents. Somehow, the juvenile serpent landed onto the pad and found it difficult to move ahead. A few people outside the mall first noticed the snake and called for help.
“The snake’s entire body was caught up, only its tail was out of the pad,” said Joaquim Naik, who helped rescue the snake.
As the Russel’s Viper is aggressive by its very nature, Naik and his co-rescuer, Omsi Para, pinched it up gently in such a manner that it would not be able to bite. “After getting him off the glue pad, we used a piece of cloth of wipe it, to let the gooey glue peel off its body,” said Para.
The snake had been on the glue pad for about half an hour and so it did not sustain much of an injury. Forest officials were informed and the snake is under observation at the Thane SPCA, a veterinary facility.
The spot where the Russel’s Viper was found is located a ground, said Pawan Sharma of Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare which rescued it. “It is not uncommon to find snakes here, especially during the monsoon.”
The snake cannot be released right away, not until the glue comes off totally, said Dr Priti Sathe. "But otherwise, it's hale and hearty."