Boa constrictors, pythons captured in Washington park — with a warning from officials

Pythons and boa constrictors, which are generally not found in the Pacific Northwest wilderness, were found roaming a Washington park, officials said.

Someone reported seeing “large snakes” Thursday near a parking lot in Lacamas Regional Park, the Camas Police Department said in a news release sent to McClatchy News.

Camas Animal Control officer Bryan Caine and Camas police responded to the scene, where they found eight exotic reptiles, according to a tweet from the City of Camas and an email Caine sent to McClatchy News.

The snakes were between 3 and 6 feet long, police said.

The city pleaded that people “not release pets into the wild,” the tweet said.

Pythons — found in Asia, Africa and Australia — are nonvenomous snakes that are not native to North or South America, Live Science, a science news website, reported. There are 41 species of pythons that grow to be between 24 inches and 30 feet, according to the Reptile Database.

Rubber pythons, which range from 14 to 30 inches, can be common in some areas of Washington, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Boa constrictors, found in tropical Central and South America, are nonvenomous snakes that grow up to 13 feet long, National Geographic says.

This story was originally published July 26, 2021 at 11:09 AM.