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Oklahoma is home to close to 50 unique species of snakes that are native to the state, including the venomous cottonmouths and rattlesnakes you want to make sure to avoid. However, residents in a trailer park in the vicinity of Oklahoma City are also dealing with a potential threat in the form of an invasive python that’s caught the attention of wildlife officials.
It’s hard to top Florida when it comes to the state with the biggest python problem stemming from irresponsible owners who wreaked havoc on the local ecosystem by releasing a former pet into the wild.
With that said, there’s a borderline disturbing number of stories concerning people who’ve stumbled across one in other locales—including a person in Green Bay who recently found one under the hood of their car (as was the case with some mechanics in South Carolina who encountered a boa constrictor while trying to do some maintenance).
According to KFOR, people in the aforementioned trailer park in Oklahoma are being told to keep an eye out for what is believed to be an albino reticulated python (a species native to southeast Asia) that has grown to a length of 13 feet and swelled to the size of “Mike Tyson’s biceps” thanks to a steady diet of “opossums, foot-long rats, and cats” it’s tracked down in the area it now calls home.
Wildlife control expert Trevor Bounds told the outlet the python has seemingly been living under a certain trailer for around five months after it was presumably released by someone who no longer wanted to take care of it. The disappearance of pet cats in the area was one of the first red flags, and Bound says an investigation led to the discovery of a lair filled with large animal carcasses occupied by a snake that can grow up to 24 feet.
There are fears the python’s prey have put up fights that has caused it to become increasingly aggressive, and Bound said it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest it could target “small children” who could be bitten and constricted if it’s not tracked down sooner rather than later.
Here’s to hoping they’re able to do exactly that.