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Longest Ever Snake Dies Mysteriously in Malaysia

Longest Ever Snake Dies Mysteriously in Malaysia
Longest Ever Snake Dies Mysteriously in Malaysia

Late last week, a giant python was found caught under a tree that had fallen near a Malaysian construction site. Its length has been pegged at 8 meters, which, if verified, would make it the longest snake ever captured.

The snake, a reticulated python, was spotted from the air during a flyover in Paya Terubong, a district of Penang. Malaysia’s Civil Defense Force was called in to deal with it, and it took them a half hour to trap it.

Sadly, it died mysteriously on Sunday after giving birth, three days after it was captured, Gizmodo reported.

Shazree Mustapha, a public relations officer at Malaysia’s Civil Defense Force, said the python “died on her own.”

 “Maybe she committed suicide. Maybe she felt threatened so she killed herself,” he said, adding he was not certain this was the reason for its demise.

Raymond Hoser, who runs snake handling courses and gave reticulated pythons their scientific name, Broghammerus Reticulatus, said that snakes do not kill themselves and the python likely died due to internal injuries.

“Snakes don’t just drop dead. If they die there is a reason,” he told the Guardian.

“The most likely reason is injuries sustained when caught or after being caught. Snakes are relatively delicate animals,” he said. He added that when nooses are used on snakes, the animal will struggle which can lead to broken bones and internal bleeding.

The huge python was thought to have beaten the record held by Medusa, a snake of the same species who was measured at 7.67 meters in the 2011.

Kept in Missouri, Medusa is part of The Edge of Hell Haunted House in Kansas City and retains the title of longest snake ever in captivity in the Guinness Book of World Records.

She is said to weigh 158.8 kg. Despite being shorter, the Malaysian python was weighed at 250 kg, spokesman Mustapha said. It is possible that larger snakes live in the wild.

 

Financialtribune.com