As snake season gets well underway, Canberra's snake rescuers have been busy with callouts across the city, including to three schools last week.
Canberra Snake Rescue and Relocation workers were called to Good Shepherd Primary School in Amaroo and St Michael's Primary School in Kaleen on Thursday to capture and release eastern brown snakes. They said they had received a call from a third school, but did not name it or say whether they had to attend.
"In both situations, the staff did the right thing and kept tabs on the animals to the best of their ability from a safe distance, and the children where at no risk whatsoever," they wrote in a post to social media.
"Something that a number of people frequently forget is that we do share our environment with particular wildlife, and this does include snakes," they wrote.
"So, seeing one whilst out and about shouldn't necessarily be expected, but it shouldn't be a shock either - even when one has been discovered in and around school grounds. That is why it is never too early to start teaching snake safety to children!"
If you do encounter one, stay calm and collected and keep a safe distance.
"Whilst keeping an eye on the animal to the best of your ability, contact us ASAP so we can have a trained and professional snake handler attend and remedy the situation.
"We here at CSRR triage our jobs, and we treat schools and other high traffic areas such as shopping centers as priority calls."
