WATCH | Massive black mamba caught near Durban

A monster 2.7m female black mamba was safely captured at a truck yard in Verulam, north of Durban, on Sunday. 

According to Reaction Unit SA, a call for assistance was put out after the reptile was spotted in the truck depot shortly before 4pm. 

“Reaction officers arrived on Moodley Lane and requested the services of a snake catcher. Jason Arnold of Universal Reptiles captured and relocated the female black mamba without incident.” 

Speaking to TimesLIVE on Monday, Arnold said the snake was definitely one of the bigger females he had captured. '

“She's pretty big for a girl. It's normally the male mambas that get really big and the females are generally quite a bit smaller,” he said. 

Locating the reptile was the hardest part of the capture, he said.

“It wasn't difficult to catch it, but it was difficult to find it though. I had to sift through piles and piles of truck rims and tyres and rubble to find it. It was a real mission. Once I found her in the pipe, it was a simple and straightforward capture.” 

Arnold said contrary to popular belief, snakes are not usually very active during this time of the year. 

“Snakes are a little less active this time of the year. They don't like temperatures that are above 29 degrees. If it is above 29 degrees, snakes usually look for cool places and that's when — specifically during this time of the year — they seek shelter in homes and garages.” 

TimesLIVE