A massive, protected Burmese python became trapped in a fishing net on the Mahananda River in northern Bangladesh, turning the incident into a wildlife rescue.
Local fishermen contacted the nation's Forest Department rather than harming the animal, and it was eventually rescued without incident, as originally reported by The Climate Watch.
Here's what to know
On September 29, local residents pulled the python from the net after catching it while fishing on the river. The snake was about 10 to 12 feet long, weighed roughly 30 pounds, and was later handed over to the Forest Department, per The Climate Watch.
According to the outlet, a local resident named Monir said that a crowd gathered after it was discovered. Shortly afterward, officials freed the snake from the netting and took it into their custody to monitor it before eventually releasing it.
A conservation officer at Bangladesh's Forest Department, Zohra Mila, told The Climate Watch that the snake shouldn't be thought of as a major threat to people, explaining, "It is nocturnal and very lazy in nature, and it does not move unless necessary." She added, "The snake generally does not harm humans."
In a report cited by The Climate Watch, Burmese pythons were said to have been seen five to six times in Panchagarh Sadar and Tetulia upazilas in the past two years alone, with locals helping rescue five of them.
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Where can I learn more?
Here are a few more python stories from Bangladesh and beyond. They cover unusual python behavior in Bangladesh, as well as human run-ins in Indonesia and Malaysia.
• At a Bangladesh farm, a giant python spent two hours swallowing a larger reticulated python.
• In Indonesia, a wildlife influencer wrangled a python to keep the animal alive.
• In Jitra, Malaysia, rescuers captured a bloated 5-meter python after it swallowed a goat.
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