16ft Reticulated Python Capable Of Attacking A Person Found In Lancashire Canal | HuffPost

16ft Python In A Lancashire Canal Proves Our Snake Overlords Are Finally Here

Sara C Nelson— Huffington Post UK

A 16ft reticulated python capable of attacking a human has been found floating in a canal in Rishton, Lancashire.

The dead reptile was found near Norden Bridge by walkers on 1 March. An autopsy has found the python showed signs of a respiratory disease, which may have contributed to its death.

The snake measured more than 16ft 5in, is believed to have been between 12 and 15 years old and may have been living in the wild for a number of days before it died.

Police are investigating the circumstances which may have contributed to its death.

Ribble Valley Wildlife Crime Officer PC Carl Chew said: “Experts believe that a python of this size could have been capable of attacking a person so it is fortunate that no one came to any serious harm.

SEE ALSO:
Aesculapian Snakes Do Live In London's Camden Lock, But They Aren't Going To Murder Your Children & Pets

“There are specific offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and Animal Welfare Act in relation to releasing a python and we would urge anyone with any information as to where the python came from to contact us.

“It is a possibility that the python may have outgrown its home and owners can contact Pip Reptile Rescue if they require any help or advice about caring for or rehousing reptiles. Similarly, we would urge anyone thinking about getting rid of their pets, particularly those which may pose a risk to the public, to contact an animal charity for advice so that they can be rehomed safely and responsibly.”

Anyone with information can contact Lancashire Police on 101 quoting log number LC-20150301-0942.

Pythons

Python Hunt(01 of25)

(credit:AP)

Florida Trains Hunters In Python Eradication(02 of25)

MIAMI - FEBRUARY 22: Snake hunter Joe Mennine removes a Burmese Python that he captured from a bag during a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission nonnative snake hunt training session on February 22, 2010 in Miami, Florida. The python was thought to have been effected by the recent cold weather in Florida because it was lethargic and barely moving when hunters found it along a levy in the Everglades. The training session was for hunters that plan to capture reptiles of concern from March 8 to April 17. Some experts believe more than 100,000 non-native Burmese pythons inhabit the Florida Everglades and are damaging the region's endangered wildlife. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)

Florida Trains Hunters In Python Eradication(03 of25)

MIAMI - FEBRUARY 22: Burmese Pythons are placed back into a box as they are used for demonstration purposes during a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission nonnative snake hunt training session on February 22, 2010 in Miami, Florida. The training session showed prospective hunters how to identify, stalk, capture and remove nonnative reptiles during the hunting season which runs from March 8 to April 17. Some experts believe more than 100,000 non-native Burmese pythons inhabit the Florida Everglades and are damaging the region's endangered wildlife. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)

Python Hunt(04 of25)

(credit:AP)

Sony Ericsson Open - Day 3(05 of25)

KEY BISCAYNE, FL - MARCH 24: Tzvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria holds a snake from the Miami Metro Zoo during the Sony Ericsson Open at Crandon Park Tennis Center on March 24, 2011 in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)

Giant Python(06 of25)

(credit:AP)

Burmese Python(07 of25)

In this Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011 photo provided by the South Florida Water Management District, workers are shown holding a nearly 16-foot long Burmese Python that was captured and killed in Everglades National Park, Fla. The Python had recently consumed a 76-lb. adult female deer. The reptile was one of the largest ever found in South Florida. (AP Photo/South Florida Water Management District) (credit:AP)

Giant Python(08 of25)

(credit:AP)

Burmese Python, Skip Snow, Mark Parry, Deer(09 of25)

In this Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011 photo provided by the National Park Service, Everglades National Park wildlife biologists Mark Parry, left, and Skip Snow perform a necropsy on a Burmese Python that was captured and killed in Everglades National Park, Fla. The 15.65-foot-long Python had recently consumed a 76-lb. adult female deer. The reptile was one of the largest ever found in South Florida. (AP Photo/National Park Service) (credit:AP)

Burmese Python, Skip Snow, Mark Parry, Deer(10 of25)

In this Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011 photo provided by the National Park Service, Everglades National Park wildlife biologists Mark Parry, left, and Skip Snow perform a necropsy on a Burmese Python that was captured and killed in Everglades National Park, Fla. The 15.65-foot-long Python had recently consumed a 76-lb. adult female deer. The reptile was one of the largest ever found in South Florida. (AP Photo/National Park Service) (credit:AP)

Python Hunt(11 of25)

(credit:AP)

Python Hunt(12 of25)

(credit:AP)

Python Hunt(13 of25)

(credit:AP)

Python Hunt(14 of25)

(credit:AP)

Britain London Zoo Python(15 of25)

(credit:AP)

APTOPIX Britain London Zoo Python(16 of25)

(credit:AP)

Benin's Mysterious Voodoo Religion Is Celebrated In Its Annual Festival(17 of25)

OUIDAH, BENIN - JANUARY 07: A man holds a Python in the 'Python Temple' on January 7, 2012 in Ouidah, Benin. Ouidah is Benin's Voodoo heartland, and thought to be the spiritual birthplace of Voodoo or Vodun as it is known in Benin. Shrouded in mystery and often misunderstood, Voodoo was acknowledged as an official religion in Benin in 1989, and is increasing in popularity with around 17 percent of the population following it. A week of activity centred around the worship of Voodoo culminates on the 10th of January when people from across Benin as well as Togo and Nigeria decend on the town for the annual Voodoo festival. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)

Ken Salazar, Sen. Bill Nelson(18 of25)

Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, center, and Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., left, look at at 13-foot python held by National Park Service Supervisor Ranger Al Mercado in the Everglades, Fla., Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012. Salazar announced the ban on importation and interstate transportation of four giant snakes that threaten the Everglades. Salazar on Tuesday announced the ban on Burmese pythons, yellow anacondas and northern and southern African pythons. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz) (credit:AP)

Ken Salazar, Ron Bergeron, Al Mercado, Bill Nelson(19 of25)

Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, right, Ron Bergeron, second from left, of the Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service Supervisor Ranger Al Mercado, second from left, and Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., left,hold a 13-foot python in the Everglades, Fla., Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012. Salazar announced the ban on importation and interstate transportation of four giant snakes that threaten the Everglades. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz) (credit:AP)

Ken Salazar(20 of25)

Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, helps National Park Rangers as they prepare to put a 13-foot python in a bag in the Everglades, Fla., Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012. Salazar announced the ban on importation and interstate transportation of four giant snakes that threaten the Everglades. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz) (credit:AP)

Everglades Pythons(21 of25)

(credit:AP)

(22 of25)

Snake hunter Dave Leivman, of Weston, Fla., shows a nine-foot python he hunted last Monday, in the Everglades, Fla., Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012. Secetary of Interior Ken Salazar announced the ban on importation and interstate transportation of four giant snakes that threaten the Everglades. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz) (credit:AP)

(23 of25)

In this November 14, 2009 photo provided by the University of Florida, University of Florida researchers hold a 162-pound Burmese python captured in Everglades National Park, Fla. Therese Walters, left, Alex Wolf and Michael R. Rochford, right, are holding the 15-foot snake shortly after the python ate a six-foot American alligator. The National Academy of Science report released Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, indicates that the proliferation of pythons coincides with a sharp decrease of mammals in the park. (AP Photo/ University of Florida, Michael R. Rochford) (credit:AP)

Kenneth Krysko(24 of25)

In an Aug. 10, 2012 photo provided by the University of Florida, University of Florida herpetologist Kenneth Krysko displays eggs found in the largest Burmese python found in Florida to date. Florida Museum of Natural History researchers examined the internal anatomy of the 17-foot-7-inch snake Friday and found a state record 87 eggs in the pythons oviducts. An invasive species and one of the deadliest and most competitive predators in South Florida, the Burmese python was first found in the Everglades in 1979. (AP Photo/University of Florida, Kristen Grace) (credit:AP)

Rebecca Reichart, Leroy Nunez, Nicholas Coutu, Claudia Grant, Kenneth Krysko(25 of25)

In an Aug. 10, 2012 photo provided by the University of Florida, Florida Museum of Natural History researchers, from left, Rebecca Reichart, Leroy Nunez, Nicholas Coutu, Claudia Grant and Kenneth Krysko examine the internal anatomy of the largest Burmese python found in Florida to date, on the University of Florida campus. The 17-foot-7-inch snake weighed 164 pounds and carried 87 eggs in its oviducts, a state record. Following scientific investigation, the snake will be mounted for exhibition at the museum for about five years, and then returned for exhibition at Everglades National Park. (AP Photo/University of Florida, Kristen Grace) (credit:AP)

Suggest a correction

|

What's Hot

Mary Berry's Unexpected Secret Ingredient For The Best Spaghetti Bolognese

Robert De Niro Drops Single F-Bomb To Devastating Effect In Latest Attack On Trump

Chris Hemsworth Makes Rare Comment About Brother Liam’s Relationship With Miley Cyrus

40 Too-Real Tweets About Children Playing Musical Instruments