Ball python captured by a hunter in Windward Oahu

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - During a recent hunting trip on Oahu’s Windward Side, a hunter didn’t catch a wild boar or a goat — but rather he found a four foot-long snake.

The Department of Agriculture said the snake was turned in to authorities on May 26 by the Oahu resident who said he found it while hunting in a Kahaluu forest.

The ball python measures four feet long and weighs about three pounds. It’s currently in custody at the Plant Quarantine Branch. Authorities don’t know how the snake slithered its way through agriculture inspectors and into the state.

Ball pythons are non-venomous and can grow up to six feet long. They are constrictors that subdue prey by coiling around and suffocating it.

Their diet usually consists of small mammals and birds, and they pose a serious threat to Hawaii’s wildlife.

It is illegal to import or possess snakes in Hawaii. Anyone who may have a pet snake or other illegal animal may avoid criminal penalties by turning them in under the state’s amnesty program. State officials say the animals won’t be euthanized under the program.

Fines can run up to $200,000, and offenders can be locked up for up to five years.

Anyone with information on illegal animals should call the State’s toll-free PEST HOTLINE at 643-PEST (7378).

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