Australia’s east coast is experiencing one of the warmest winters on record. It makes venomous snakes thrive, according to the Australian Reptile Park which issued a warning to the public.
Higher temperatures combined with winter rainfall are perfect conditions for venomous snakes that become more active, writes the reptile park according to CNN.
The snakes usually go into a kind of hibernation during the winter and often seek out places where they can hide until the temperature climbs up. Usually that doesn’t happen until September. But now the heat has attracted them earlier than usual.
“Snake bites most often occur when people try to catch or kill the snake, so if you don’t do either of these things, you have a better chance of being safe,” the park writes.
Australia’s winters have become warmer as a result of climate change.