Mandarin rat snake
370 passengers were left stranded in Sydney after a 20cm-long Mandarin rat snake was found aboard a Qantas Boeing 747 plane bound for Japan.
Crew members found the venomous snake near the doorway in the cabin before passengers boarded the plane according to a Qantas spokesperson. However it is not yet clear when or where the snake boarded the plane, possibly in Singapore where the plane previously landed and the snake can be found in the wild.
The snake was captured by members of Australia’s Agriculture Department called to the scene and later killed to make sure that it did not become a non-native pest in Australia or introduce other diseases to Australia’s own snake populations. The plane was also fuumigated to make sure there were no other creatures stowed away on board.
The Mandarin rat snake, or Euprepiophis mandarinus, poses no threat to humans.
