Biosecurity Queensland sets snake catchers on trail of two-metre reptile released after officers captured it in Surfers Paradise but thought it was a harmless python
Australian Associated Press
Monday 6 April 2015 23.02 BSTLast modified on Tuesday 7 April 201506.12 BST
A bizarre search has unfolded on the Gold Coast after a South American boa constrictor was released by police who wrongly believed it was a harmless python.
Police say officers were called to the Esplanade at Surfers Paradise on or about 26 March in response to reports of a large snake spotted on a footpath, at the base of a tree.
The officers released the reptile into bushland at the Southport Spit. Their action has sparked an operation by Biosecurity Queensland officers, who said the snake was not a harmless python after all. It has been identified as a two-metre South American boa constrictor, a large predatory snake that could pose a threat to other reptiles and even domestic pets.
“These snakes could wipe out entire species of reptiles and they have been known to eat cats and dogs,” a Gold Coast snake catcher, Tony Harrison, told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
“We have been told to capture it so the state government can euthanise it. It makes me really angry that people import these snakes as pets and release them when they get too big. They carry heaps of diseases.”
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