A huge python was dumped in a 3,000-acre park in California. Now no one can find it
.png "A python was found in Anthony Chabot Regional Park on Sunday, Feb. 13.")
A hiker was walking through a California park and noticed something slithering nearby.
It wasn’t something hikers are supposed to see in the Bay Area. But a huge, fully grown python was rustling through the park.
“I was frankly terrified because I’m really scared of snakes,” Anna Hoffman, who spotted the snake on Sunday, Feb. 13, told NBC Bay Area.
The hiker saw the snake on Big Bear Trail in Anthony Chabot Regional Park and took a photo of it, the Bay Area News Group reported. The photo prompted a search of the Oakland park.
No one has been able to find the snake since then, ABC 7 reported. It’s missing in the 3,000-acre park.
The snake isn’t venomous, park staff told KRON, so there’s little concern that it will hurt people. However, it could be in danger or harm the native species.
“It appears to be an adult snake. It was probably a pet someone had four to 20 years, decided they didn’t want it anymore and discarded it like a piece of garbage,” Oakland Zoo Manager Adam Fink told NBC Bay Area. “The chances of them harming you is zero.”
Park staff are hoping to catch the snake and work with the Oakland Zoo to find a long-term home for it, ABC 7 reported.
The snake cannot live in the park because its climate “is much colder than its native habitat,” East Bay Regional Parks spokeswoman Jen Vanya told the Bay Area News Group.
Vanya told NBC Bay Area the snake is likely holed up to stay warm, which could make it harder to find.
Hikers who see the snake should call park staff at 510-690-6676 and take a photo of the animal, ABC 7 reported.
This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 10:34 AM with the headline "A huge python was dumped in a 3,000-acre park in California. Now no one can find it."