For almost two months , Poland has been in the thick of a entrance man – er , Snake River – Leigh Hunt . Nicknamed Bertha , a nearly 18 - foot - long python has been slither through the Polish summer , inciting frenzy , sparking headline , and even the deployment of regime resource .
It all started onJuly 7 , when Animal Rescue Poland ( ARP ) received report of a 2 - metre - long ( 7 feet ) moult snakeskin near the Vistula River , just to the south of Warsaw . A little while afterwards , creature rescue crews discovered a 2nd 5 - meter - long ( 16 - foot ) part of skin measure 50 centimetre ( 19 inch around ) . The molted skin was identified as belonging to an Indian python ( Python molurus molurus)and , when accounting for its head , could be as long as 20 invertebrate foot .
At the time , the agency said the python would have been hungry and irritable – we would be too if we just shed our outer facing . resident were told to quash walk and sleeping near the river whileauthorities pursuedBertha ’s understructure – er , belly – prints .
The pursuit has since heat up and the serpent - on - the - loose has sparkedinternational care . The government cleared air space forfour dronesto scan the bank of the river . They were then joined by four boats and as many as 80 volunteers , police officer , and firefighters . More than 2,000 photographs have been taken and analyze by wildlife officials hoping to place the mysterious reptile . Even a dog named Koka ( Polish forCocaine ) joined the searching ranks , using scent methods to detect where the snake had rested or swum .
Native to Sri Lanka , India , and the East Indies , Amerind pythonseat prey live after stalking and ambushing them . Reaching weights up to 91 kilograms ( 200 pounds ) , the brutes kill by biting and constricting until their victim eventually suffocates . There are no disk indicating an Indian python has ever eaten a human , but they have been known to swallow a cervid whole .
A heatwave in July made the scare manoeuvre all the more tangible . Bertha was more likely to be on the move , and people were more likely to be out with the squeamish weather condition . Now , nearly two month later , temperatures are cool down and slowing down the snake with it . An established hotline has helped authoritiescatchthree other exotic snake on the run , while Koka has sniffed out pelt - lined droppings , but Bertha still remains at - large . The pitiful true statement is that if Bertha is n’t found before winter strikes , she most likely wo n’t make it another season to terrorize our imaginations for another time .
