Posted on 09/28/2026 7:08:00 PM PDT by BenLurkin
An extremely venomous and potentially deadly Gaboon viper was recently spotted loose in a residential area of Orange County, according to the Santa Ana Police Department.
The viper was most recently seen near the intersection of Main Street and Edinger Avenue in Santa Ana.
“Gaboon Vipers are highly venomous and are not native to North America,” Santa Ana PD announced on social media Monday. “We are asking the public to please be aware of your surroundings. If you see the snake, DO NOT approach or attempt to handle it.”
Gaboon viper are native to Central, East and West Africa, and are commonly found on the forest floor, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Gaboon vipers can grow to more than 6 feet in length and are known to eat small and medium-sized mammals and birds.
“Gaboon vipers are passive hunters, waiting concealed to strike at whatever small creatures pass within range,” Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute website reads. “Most snakes strike and release, but this viper holds on until its prey dies.”
The snake spotted in Santa Ana is estimated to be approximately 4 to 5 feet long.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
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If you see the snake, DO NOT approach or attempt to handle it.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Darn, I was going to pick it up for my grandson...
Good thing for the warning.
‘If you see the snake, DO NOT approach or attempt to handle it’
Well, duh.
Someone needs to unleash a Honey Badger.
Neither are the illegal aliens like the child killers, rapists and home invaders.
Wanted posters showing this highly venomous snake sure would be nice. Most people probably don’t know a Gaboon viper from a Baboon viper. Snake Mug Shots, full face and side profile.
Release the Gaboon Mongoose.
Release the Gaboon 12 gauge
Dang thing needs to be runt over and slam on the brakes
As far as is known, only one man survived a Gaboon viper bite. Ivory hunter Wally Johnson was bitten and abandoned by his hunting crew (they didn’t want to be found in the presence of a dead white man). He managed to get out and survive but it was pretty grim.
Hey California -
Just pick up that Gaboon Viper and bring it here to Texas and any of us Texans, we will shoot it for you.
It is every Texan’s God-given duty to shoot any snake.
In California the Bolshevik Government may require you to go to therapy with that snakey.
NASTY looking critter…
Wow, he’s a fat boy! Looks like a slug! Wonder if he tastes like chicken.
Just biting people American snakes are too lazy to bite.
It has the longest fangs of any venomous snake, up to 2 inches 
Awesome camo.
Spent my childhood collecting and playing with snakes.
My fav was the little green one. My parents agreed!
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