This python gave these tourists more than they bargained for.
Exploring Kruger National Park in South Africa is a great way to see all the animals the Dark Continent is known for. One never knows what they will see while on safari. You may witness lions hunting, rhinos fighting, or even a crocodile attack. There are also some rather large snakes slithering around the park, although they are less common.
Recently, a large python got caught in traffic on the road next to a vehicle loaded with tourists. The big snake strikes at a passing car while tourist cameras roll from another vehicle nearby.
The next thing the group knows, the large reptile is slithering towards their vehicle. They attempt to move, but the snake has vanished. The next driver to pass alerts the group what is going on. The snake has slithered its way into the vehicle's engine!
This is not the first time we have seen a python slither its way into a vehicle engine and it probably will not be the last either. The video's description notes that the footage was captured by Kerry Balaam, a local guide. The incident happened when they stopped to talk to another guide named Arun.
"Jan, who is also a guide, was on the drive with me and offered to help Arun remove the python from the engine," Balaam said in the video's description. "At first, it was only two vehicles and within a few minutes a couple of cars had parked nearby to watch the action unfold. The python was pulled out reluctantly and then released back into the bush."
Since it is winter in Africa, temperatures are a bit low right now. Cold-blooded snakes are just not built for dealing with lower temperatures and are attracted by the heat offered by the vehicle's engine. The colder temperatures also help explain why the snake seems so sluggish here. In warm weather, these snakes are quite defensive and will fight back when humans attempt to pick them up. In this case, the weather was a good thing since it allowed a safe rescue and release back into the wild.
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For more outdoor content from Travis Smola, be sure to follow him on Twitter and check out his Geocaching and Outdoors with Travis YouTube channels.
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