200 snakes caught in Al Ain in 2011

Authorities in the eastern oasis town of Al Ain caught nearly 200 snakes in 2011 while it received around 500 reports about sighting the reptiles.

The captured snakes included python, sand adders and other species ranging between 50 cm and 1.5 metres in length.

The waste management centre in the city said most of the captured snakes were not poisonous but warned the public to stay away from these reptiles and report them on the free phone number 8001122.

“Some of the snakes caught last year included sand snakes which normally live in sand dunes areas…they are night reptiles and rely on their strong muscles to capture their victim before swallowing it,” a source at the centre told the Arabic language daily Emarat Alyoum.

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