Wildlife Direct and other conservation organizations are uring Kenyans not to kill snakes driven into their homes by a spate of cold weather.
Kenyan wildlife experts are advising residents not to kill the snakes that are being driven into their homes due to a recent stretch of cold weather.
The chill has accompanied a protracted drought across the equatorial East African nation, sending the reptiles into people’s kitchens and bedrooms.
"We appeal to people not to consider all snakes enemies. They are suffering from cold weather the way we are," said National Museums of Kenya Snake Park curator Rashid Kaka.
He told the Daily Nation that the snakes are almost entirely harmless, and could be kept as pets.
That’s not likely to become a very popular hobby due to many people’s revulsion at seeing them and the long-held belief that keeping snakes is a form of witchcraft.
“When I see a snake, I see a grave,” said Nairobi resident Josephine Ong’ayo. “I either flee or kill it.”
Photo: Clare Taylor - Wildlife Direct