Sunshine snakes are on the prowl

By Jade Lawton
SNAKES are slithering out of their winter hiding spots and soaking up the spring sun in the Cardinia Shire.
Stuart Dunbar, of Pakenham’s Eliminator Pest Control, last week picked up a 1.2-metre copperhead snake from a Beaconsfield backyard.
He was also called to a Gembrook winery where a snake was spotted.
“The snakes are coming out now, sunning themselves and eating small lizards,” he said.
Mr Dunbar said 1.2 metres was a “reasonable” size for copperheads, which rank 11th on the list of the world’s most venomous snakes.
“We got a call after they nearly put their hand on it in the vegetable garden. It was living under a concrete slab and coming out to sun itself,” he said.
Mr Dunbar said tiger snakes, the world’s fourth most toxic snake, could reach a length of up to five metres, and were also common in the area.
“They are getting more common as we take up their area. After we catch them, we release them in an area without humans,” he said.
The urban sprawl means Mr Dunbar has come across snakes in some unusual places.
Last summer he was asked to catch a snake living inside a car, one that was spotted slithering across the top of a six-foot fence and a snake that was swimming across a suburban pond eating frogs.
“If you see a snake, back away and keep an eye on it. Get everyone inside and give us a call – snakes will try to get away unless you aggravate them,” he said.
“You can make your backyard less attractive to snakes by keeping the grass short, and don’t have piles of wood or bricks or old tyres.”