A dad has described the moment a venomous snake slithered up his children’s buggy as he walked along a beach.
The one-and-a-half foot long adder wrapped itself around the wheel of the buggy before dropping off and leaving the girls, aged four and two, alone.
Dad Darren Redston and wife Jaime were pushing daughters Misty and Harlow in a wagon-style buggy to Kynance Cove on the Lizard peninsula in Cornwall on July 11.
Darren said: "We were in the National Trust area and were walking down to the beach when I noticed what I thought was a stick.
“I was going to step on it but luckily noticed it was a snake in time.
"It wrapped itself around the wheel of the wagon, which the kids were in.
“I panicked and thought I would have to grab it and sling it, and risk getting bitten. Luckily it got back off."
It was the first time Darren had ever seen a snake in the wild though it didn't ruin the Manchester family's holiday in Cornwall.
"We love it here and come down ever year. Luckily I didn't go home with a snake bite this year.”
The adder is the UK's only venomous snake, according to preservation charity The Wildlife Trusts.
An adder’s poison is generally of little danger to humans but can be very painful and cause a nasty inflammation.
It is particularly dangerous to the very young, ill or old.
Anyone who is bitten by an adder is urged to seek medical attention immediately.
The Wildlife Trusts website states: “Our only venomous snake, the shy adder can be spotted basking in the sunshine in woodland glades and on heathlands. An adder bite is a very rare occurrence, and can be painful, but is almost never fatal.
“Adders are secretive animals and prefer to slither off into the undergrowth than confront and bite humans and domestic animals; most attacks happen when they are trodden on or picked up.
“Instead, they use their venom to immobilise and kill their prey of small mammals, nestlings and lizards.”
