Saturday, September 27, 2014

Slow Saturday Special: Snaking Up to Maine

Maybe you will learn something along the way:

"Women find snake in trunk of car rented at Logan" by Trisha Thadani | Globe correspondent   September 26, 2014

Two women driving a rental car from Boston’s Logan International Airport to Maine were shocked, and a bit unnerved, to find another passenger had come along for the ride, a 3-foot long ball python they discovered slithering in the trunk.

The women rented the car at Logan Airport Wednesday and drove to Kennebunk, Maine, said Kennebunk Deputy Police Chief Dan Jones. It was not until they went to unload their luggage at the Port Inn hotel that they found that the python had tagged along.

“They were quite excited . . . but not in a good way,” Jones said, who noted that dealing with snakes is not a common occurrence for Kennebunk police either.

The odd thing is there already is a famous family of snakes that lives there.

An officer arrived at the scene and coaxed the animal out of the trunk into a pillow case, Jones said. The officer brought the python back to the police station, where the Maine Warden Service picked it up and transported it to Spark’s Ark Animal Services in Gloucester, Maine.

Jones said ball pythons are native to West Africa and are relatively docile and not venomous.

“We have no idea how it got there, but we don’t think it was intentional,” Jones said. “Since it’s native to West Africa, if it’s in Boston, it means it was just someone’s pet that must have gotten away.”

Massachusetts Port Authority spokesman Matthew Brelis said officials at Logan were aware of the issue, and State Police are investigating.

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Also seeSnake found in rental car trunk in Maine

RelatedQuincy girl with rare tumor gets Make-A-Wish trip to Disney World

Cute little girl and a sad story, and I don't mean to snap at you but....

"Maine woman finds two-headed baby snapping turtle

A woman in Maine has found a two-headed baby snapping turtle that was trying to cross the road. Kathleen Talbot of Hudson told WLBZ-TV that she found the tiny creature this week while she was watching turtle hatchlings to make sure they arrived safely at the other side of the street. She noticed that one of the turtles had been left behind. It was so dirty that she thought at first that it had two feet in front. It was not until she got home and washed off the turtle that she realized it had two heads. She named the turtle Frank and Stein."

Fuku and Shima for our Japanese friends, and one can't help but wonder if the never-ending radioactive spew saturating the Pacific for over three years now is starting to make its way around the Globe.