New York officials said last week that they recently made a surprising discovery on New York’s Long Island. On Valentine’s Day, the Department of Environmental Conservation receives a report of a large snake on the side of a road.
When they arrived at the scene, officers found the dead snake “curled up in a ball”. And when they were able to flatten it, they discovered how big it really was. The agency said the snake was found dead and was initially thought to be about 12 feet long, but actually measured 14 feet — a length roughly the height of a one-story house.
The snake was on the side of a road in Medford, a town a short drive west of the Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory. The agency said the snake was removed from the road to be “properly” disposed of.
The creature was identified as a reticulated python, which according to London’s Natural History Museum is the “world’s longest snake”. The species is native to South Asia, the history museum said, and can grow to more than 20 feet tall. In the wild, snakes are known to eat birds and mammals, “including larger species such as deer or pigs,” according to Zoo Atlanta.
New York Department of Environmental Conservation
According to the museum, the longest reticulated python found in the wild was discovered in 1912, and was about 33 feet long — “more than half the length of a bowling lane and making this snake taller than a giraffe.”
“These types of snakes are illegal to keep as pets in New York and may only be possessed by holders of a dangerous animal license,” the New York Department of Environmental Conservation said. “An investigation into the owner of the snake is underway.”
Trending news
Lee Cohen
Thanks for reading CBS News.
Create your free account or login
For more features.