Mumbai: Forsten's cat snake rescued from residential building; watch video

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A Forsten's cat snake was safely rescued from a seventh-floor apartment in a residential building at Royal Palms and later released back into its natural habitat.

Wildlife enthusiast and snake rescuer Kaushal Dubey said, "On Monday night, around 9 pm, I received an urgent call from a family at Royal Palms in Mumbai, reporting a snake inside their home. The snake was found trapped in the kitchen window grill on the 7th floor. The family was puzzled, wondering how it could have climbed so high. Since it's an arboreal species, it likely ascended via the building's drainage pipes. Fortunately, the snake was safely rescued and released back into its natural habitat."

It's an arboreal snake called Forsten Cat Snake (Boiga Forsteni) semi-venomous and eats small birds, eggs, lizards, etc.

It may be noted that Forstern's Cat Snake is the second largest among cat snakes and is mildly venomous.

According to experts and herpetologists, Forsten's Cat Snake is a nocturnal species and shows activity from early night to early morning. It is also said that this species remains hidden in tree holes, caves, piles, and dense vegetation at height during day time. It lives majorly in almost all dense forests found in hills and plains.