Cobra and python spotted 'fighting' on NTU campus

Witnesses saw the python constricting itself around the head of the cobra around noon on Thursday (Aug 27). The python was taken away by pest control, but the cobra was only caught hours later.
Channel NewsAsia 27 Aug 15;

SINGAPORE: Two snakes, believed to be a reticulated python and a king cobra, were seen "fighting" each other on the street near Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Research Techno Plaza (RTP) at noon on Thursday (Aug 27).

PhD student Abhishek Ambede shared pictures of the incident and told Channel NewsAsia the snakes were wrestling on the road beside a forested area. "Some of us working at RTP can see the site from our office. When we spotted the incident, I went down and noticed that the python had constricted around the cobra's head.

The tussle, witnessed by a large crowd, lasted for about 30 minutes before the snakes separated. "The cobra escaped to the bushes, leaving the python moving slowly on its own along the road."

Mr Abhishek said he and other bystanders alerted NTU's pest control, as well as the Animal Concerns Research and Society (ACRES). Pest control officers removed the python, but were unable to locate the cobra.

After 4pm, the cobra reappeared briefly. "It was about that time that ACRES appeared but by the time they arrived, the snake had disappeared again into one of the drainage holes," Mr Abhishek said.

"ACRES told us they could not catch the snake if they could not see it. All we know is that there is no immediate danger. The only worry is that if it reappears on the road, there is a chance it might get run over," he added.

Mr Satish Digen, a technical officer at NTU, said pest control officers put sulfur powder down the drains in an attempt to draw it out. The reptile eventually emerged from its hiding place at about 10pm on Thursday and was taken away in a bag by the pest control team.

The NTU Graduate Student Council earlier urged those on campus to be on alert for the cobra. "Please be careful when you take the sidewalk near to bushes. Night researchers and night runners, please be extra vigilant," it said in a post on Facebook.

- CNA/hs