Rescued snakes recovering under specialist care at uShaka’s Dangerous Creatures

THEY may be anomalies in the natural world, but at the Dangerous Creatures exhibits at uShaka Sea World, both Jean-Claude von Egg-eater, a two-headed Southern Brown Egg-eater, and Ivan the one-eyed Reticulated Python, are recovering and flourishing since their rescues.

Jean-Claude was rescued by Nick Evans in Ndwedwe in June last year and is now under the professional care of senior herpetologist Lesley Labuschagne and staff at the education centre.

Southern Brown Egg-eaters are a harmless species and as the name suggests, eat bird eggs.

“In the wild, they are quite adept at finding birds’ nests to feast on the eggs. They are able to swallow eggs whole and crack the eggs with spiny bones situated in their necks. Since Jean-Claude has come to us, they have done very well. Despite not being able to feed without assistance, we are always offering eggs in their enclosure to hopefully entice them to eat on their own. They have gained a bit of weight since being in our care for a little over eight months and now weigh 5.5 grams.

“Their arrival here has also drawn quite a few onlookers due to their curiosity. It has really helped us raise our educational profile which is something we pride ourselves at here at Dangerous Creatures. We hope to change the perception of snakes being evil creatures. For us, the two biggest challenges are not only conserving snake species but also helping change people’s attitude towards them,” she said.

Speaking on the python born with one eye, Labuschagne said they decided to intervene because the reptile needed specialist care.

“We immediately offered our assistance when he came to us in 2020. When he first came in, he weighed 209 grams; he now weighs 1.68 kilograms and is doing exceptionally well. He is a Reticulated Python but an albino lavender morph. We expect him to obviously get much bigger, and I’ve found that even with one eye, his senses are that much more heightened.

“Snakes don’t have external ears, but Ivan seems so in tune with everything around him. He instantly knows when I’m walking towards his exhibit, and he responds immediately. He is so different from the other snake species I have the privilege of working with. This species of snake grows to be the longest of any pythons, and they have been recorded to be up to 10 metres long. We hope visitors will look out for both of these strikingly beautiful snakes on their next visit to Dangerous Creatures.”

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