Serpens Cadans (Drop Snake)

When we were Down Under last November people warned us about the dangerous wild animals that are peculiar to Australia - in particular Drop Bears and Hoop Snakes. We saw neither, although I did hear a Drop Bear late one night as it fell onto the roof of our cabin in the woods and then leapt to the ground before making off into the undergrowth. Of course I did not go out to investigate (or catch a blip) until the following morning when all that was visible was a large impression in the ground.

Serpens Cadans (or Drop Snake) is a similar rarely seen creature that lives only in colder climes. It hibernates for most of the year, only comes out in sub-zero temperatures and disappears just as quickly when the temperature rises above zero. As I predicted yesterday the snow is starting to melt and hence today was an ideal opportunity to search for this elusive animal. I was lucky to find this specimen, deep in the woods and even luckier to avoid it dropping on me. If one lands on you it can give you quite a sting, but thankfully they are not poisonous.