'Snake or worm?': Woman takes Internet's help to identify tangled creature she found while cleaning pool
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: What's the worst that could happen while cleaning out a swimming pool? An Australian woman recently came upon an unpleasant discovery during the chore as she spotted a tangled creature hiding amongst the leaves floating in the water. The Sydney mom was left completely confused as she found it after opening the filter of the pool, with other debris in the mess as well. It seems the woman had no clue as to what creature she had found, as she took the help of Facebook users to identify it by posting it on a community page.
“Snake or worm- or something else?” she asked on the post, and many jumped in to answer. While some were convinced it was a snake, one user joked about it being a sneaky eel. The OP then came back to the post and commented that she posted the photo on a ‘snake ID’ website, where she was informed it was a blind snake and “completely harmless.” One of the commenters on the post provided insight on the snake, saying it ate “ants and termites,” and that it can be easily picked up and “release(ed) back in the garden.”
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‘All snakes have the ability to swim'
Serin Subaraj, a herpetologist from Curtin University, weighed in on the discussion about blind snakes. He said he believed the snake had fallen into the water and had been grasping at whatever it could to stay afloat since it cannot see, according to Yahoo! News. “All snakes have the ability to swim but species like blind snakes are not the best at swimming so it would cling onto anything to stay afloat,” he said.
Are blind snakes dangerous?
Blind snakes are usually non-venomous and do not have the capability to bite, meaning they are often mistaken for earthworms. This explains the OP's confusion as to whether the creature was a snake or a worm. Blind snakes are usually pink or grey in color, and they have smooth scales on their bodies that allow them to travel through soil.