The Baron’s racer (Philodryas Baroni) snake that “disappeared” from its enclosure July 12 at the San Francisco Zoo’s newly ope
The Baron’s racer (Philodryas Baroni) snake that “disappeared” from its enclosure July 12 at the San Francisco Zoo’s newly opened South American Tropical Rainforest and Aviary exhibit has been found. . . in its enclosure. Zoo officials first speculated that birds in the exhibit ate the snake, or it had escaped.
Baron’s Racer Missing From New Exhibit at San Francisco Zoo
“It never escaped at all, from what we can tell,” zoo spokeswoman Nancy Crowley told SFGATE. “It was in the tank that it was always in. The snakes can camouflage themselves when they don’t want to be found. We coaxed it out by placing large plants inside the space.”
The Baron’s racer is a rear-fanged colubrid snake that grows to about 150 to 180 centimeters. It is an arboreal snake that is active during the day and is not considered aggressive. It feeds on mice, lizards, and amphibians and is native to forests and woodlands of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay.
John B. Virata keeps a western hognose snake, a ball python, two corn snakes, a king snake, and two leopard geckos. His first snake, a California kingsnake, was purchased at the Pet Place in Westminster, CA for $5. His first pet reptile was a green anole that arrived in a small box via mail order. Follow him on Twitter @johnvirata
