Santa Ana police search for a venomous Gaboon viper loose in a neighborhood.

Santa Ana police are searching for a suspected 4- to 5-foot Gaboon viper last seen in a tree near Main Street and Edinger Avenue. The highly venomous snake is native to Africa, and officials identified it from photographs; its escape and any owner remain unknown. Police are working with professional snake catchers and a snake expert, and say they have received no further sighting reports. Residents are urged not to approach or try to capture it and to call police at 714-834-4211 if they see it; anyone bitten should seek medical care immediately. Gaboon vipers are generally calm and rarely bite people, but their bites can be fatal.
Gaboon vipers have the longest fangs of any snake in the world.
Possessing or transporting a Gaboon viper in California requires special permits because it is classified as a restricted species.
The viper’s leaf-like coloration helps it blend into forest-floor leaf litter, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.
Gaboon vipers are ambush hunters that typically hold onto prey after striking rather than releasing it.
Publishers
16
Articles
37
Reach
53