Why experts say you should welcome this snake into your home
A slithery house guest has been praised by Queenslanders fed up with sharing their homes with “pesky” geckos after the tiny snake was photographed gobbling up one of the critters on the Sunshine Coast.
A baby brown tree snake that crawled through the cracks of brickwork at a Buderim home was photographed with its jaws clasped around the head of gecko, with the picture shared to Facebook by Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 on Sunday.
“Are you sick of those Pesky Asian House Gecko’s!?!” snake catcher Richie asked his followers.
“This awesome photo taken in Buderim was sent to us for ID a few days back by Stuart Wilson.
It’s a juvenile Brown Tree Snake chowing down on an Asian House Gecko,” he wrote.
The reptile expert said the species of gecko pictured was an introduced pest that “completely dominate the Sunshine Coast”, causing a decline in native geckos.
“Around the home they are super annoying as they poop all over the house and keep people awake with their ‘chuck chuck chuck’ calls throughout the night,” he said of the gecko.
Anyone fearing spotting a brown tree snake in their home might take comfort in learning they are not considered dangerous to humans, despite being mildly venomous.
“Next time you see a Brown Tree Snake hanging around the house instead of calling us to relocate it just remember, it’s doing you a free service in ridding your house of the pesky Asian House Gecko!” Richie said.
Many Queenslanders said they wouldn’t mind a brown tree snake in their own homes to solve their gecko “invasion”.
“I am willing to share my house with a Brown Tree Snake as long as it eats these invaders,” one said.
Despite the snake’s benefits, one woman wasn’t convinced, saying, “This image is the illustration of nightmares…”
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