Ashby de la Zouch
BLACK SNAKE
A gentleman reported running over a 6-8ft long black snake whilst driving in Ashby Leicestershire, he said it was approx 6 to 8ft in length and very dark possibly black in colour with no markings from what he could see, but only 1.5 inches in diameter, my sons car ran over it first then mine he said, does anyone have an idea of what this may have been, at first I suggested it may had been a peice of old hosepipe or something but he was adament about what he had seen, it was still moving afterwards he said, he also added that he had seen lots of snakes ran over whilst driving abroad but nothing like this, he has been back to the scene since, but the snake has gone, I have also been over there and found nothing, so whatever, it was has definately gone or been removed now, he spoke with the local papers hoping that maybe the owner of the exotic reptile would come forward or that if some kids had picked up the body they may have said something, but to no avail.

Bushby
RACCOON
An Unusual Garden Visitor
A house in Bushby has had a unusual addition to it's wildlife garden, a Raccoon was successfully filmed by a keen wildlife enthusiast, who is also a retired GP, this startling revalation came about when something strange looking, was feeding on nuts put out for the birds and other wildlife such as Foxes and Badgers.

Leicester
CALIFORNIAN KING SNAKE
Snake missing
A Califrnian king snake went missing from a Braunston Lane home, in Leicester at approx 15:45 hrs, fire fighters were called out to no avail, as dispite the usage of latest technology (Thermal imaging equipment) the snake could not be found, resident were told the snake is not poisonous, but can have a nasty bite.

Swadlincote
TARANTULA
Tarantula causes uproar on market
SWADLINCOTE market was visited by an exotic female, who was found sleeping in a crate of bananas.
The Tarantula spider which was three inches in diameter, emerged sleepily onto the market stall causing uproar until a local petshop owner took her in hand and took the spider to his home in Castle Gresley. The spider was nicknamed Cyril and given residence among the petshop owners collection of Chipmunks Terrapins under the vigilance of a guard cat who hated intruders. Gresleys specialist spiderman, identified Cyril as a half grown female tarantula of the mexican red rump black velvet variety. he said: "She's about two years old and comes from a subtropical location." "Yes she does bite but this one doesn't mind handling. "Her bite would be like a bee sting; not dangerous to anyone except those who are allergic to stings." The spider remained with the specialist who had a male of the species in his possession. He firmly upheld the policy that only captivity bred spiders should ever be kept as pets, but since the young female had found her way to Gresley, there she would stay.

Wigston
BOA CONSTRICTOR
Snakes Alive! Boa Bertie's escaped
by: Ian Whadcoat
A FOURTEEN stone, 14 ft pregnant snake is on the loose after escaping from its owner's Wigston home.
Bertie, an Argentinian black and silver boa constrictor, is one of only eight in this country and is thought to be pregnant. It's owner said, Bertie is worth up to £2.000 and could give birth to more than 20 snakes. She is not poisonous but is extremely powerful and could pose a risk to very small children, although the cold weather is thought to have sapped her strength. the owner, searched the grounds of his home after realising Bertie had gone missing at 9pm on Sunday while he was cleaning her vivarium. But there was no sign of the snake, which has a girth of 14 to 16 inches, and eats large rodents and rabbits. Firefighters were called in to check the house, including the chimney. Now, police have organised their own search after taking advise from experts. They have warned anyone who may come across the snake to be extremely cautious and not to provoke or handle her. The owner, who has about 90 reptiles, said: "She could die if not found with in the next 24 hours. She is potentially dangerous just because of her size and strength. It takes three people to put her back into her tank, but as it is cold it will probably not have the power or speed to do anything." A fire brigade spokeswomen said: " It was thought the snake had got in to the chimney breast. The chimney couldn't be accessed from the house because of a gas fire so it was checked from the roof, but nothing was found." Wigston police's inspector Peter Morris Said: " It is likely to head for somewhere warm. Anyone finding it is advised not to touch it but to call us."

Loughborough
RACCOON
I received a phone call regarding the sighting of an animal on the evening of Thursday 3rd October 2000, it was apparently seen to be walking across fencing with agility at the side of a house on the S/W side of Loughborough in Leicestershire. The creature was said not to be a cat, it was sandy/grey in colour, 20ins from tip of nose to rear end and a long bushy tail like a fox but with rings around it, the person who reported this wishes to remain anonymous, this sounds about the right description for a Raccoon so I've included it.

Oaks in Charnwood
POLECAT
I was driving home after shopping at Morrisons in Coalville, approx. 9:30 pm on Thursday, when I saw what appeared at first to be a cat that had been ran over and lying in the road, so doing the humane thing, I stopped to see if it had only been injured, but then to my astonishment in the headlights of the car I'd realised it was in fact a Polecat, approx 18ins in length and very, very dead, however seeing as I had a weeks shopping in the car I picked the body up and moved it off the road and onto the grass verge by a hedge, but on returning the following evening to film the animals body and collect it, the grass had been cut, and it's body gone.

Sharford
RHEA
Village's rhea of the year
A village centre near Hinckley resembled a scene out of the Keystone Cops when a giant flightless bird escaped from a breeding farm for a six-hour road-running jaunt.

Will, a rhea named after former England rugger captain Will Carling, caused a stir in Sharnford by disrupting traffic and scaring a lollipop lady as he trotted merrily around the village. At first mistaken for an emu, Will is in fact a greater rhea, a
slightly smaller, South American cousin of the ostrich. It turned out the bird had escaped from High Cross Rheas, in Coventry Road, run by a local breeder.

A police spokeswoman said: "We first received a report of a large bird on the loose in the Sharnford area. "A number of officers were involved in the chase. By the number of calls we had, it was everywhere. It must be a fast bird." Villagers and police officers were led a merry dance by the renegade bird.

Sharnford Primary School's crossing patrol officer, Carole Barber, was diligently manning her post on Leicester Road when she encountered the bird. She said: "I felt something brush past me and thought crikey - what was that! "It was wandering up the road, holding up the traffic, trotting along merrily." The rhea continued to elude capture for six hours until, eventually, a posse including police, villagers and its owner Jake Cooper finally cornered him in a farmer's field.

Mr Cooper said: "I think he got frightened by the high winds or something." but "Will" is safely back with his friends again now.

Contributed by: Lisa Willow

23rd January 2004
(Source IC Coventy.co.uk)

File: 2004-110
Ref No: 1015

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