There's A Fault On The Line, UK

There's A Fault On The Line, UK

17 May 2008

The wrong type of snake almost brought trains to a halt along a steam railway.Signal engineer Nick Perring was called into action when reports of a fault along the South Devon Railway were traced to a cupboard at Staverton station.

Opening the door, he found a pair of uninvited house guests had slithered into place and coiled themselves around the signal.

Initially he took the pair to be venomous adders.

For generations, railwaymen have swapped tales about the dangers posed by the creatures, which enjoy nothing better than basking in the hot sun close to the track.

The railway even has an original Great Western Railway sign warning walkers to put dogs on leads because of the danger of snakes.

But on closer inspection, the beady-eyed pair turned out to be harmless grass snakes.

Mr Perring said: "I was shocked when I saw them because I thought they were adders. Fortunately, they were just grass snakes and didn't stop the trains running."

The reptiles are thought to have been drawn into the signal box by the hot weather earlier in the week. The unusual problem was solved when the shy creatures decided to move of their own accord. Grass snakes are common in the Westcountry and like their adder cousins are commonly seen out in the sun trying to warm up.

The are often confused with the adder, or common viper, which is the only venomous reptile in the UK.

Although the snakes have similar markings, the grass snake is the longer of the two and has a more slender head.

LOL I am not so sure they are that easily mistaken for an adder but could understand why some unknowledgeable person would panick and not know the difference.