Snake reunited with owner after year of cold and crows

A pet snake that was missing for a year has been reunited with its owner after it was dropped into a garden by a crow.

Angus the corn snake escaped from her owner's home in Spennymoor, County Durham, and was thought to have perished.

But the 3ft-long snake managed to defy all odds and survived for a year in the cold after shutting down most of its body.

A resident spotted the lost reptile hiding under a recycling box on March 18 but it slithered away before the RSPCA could get there.

To the surprise of RSPCA inspector John Lawson the snake was later found on a nearby garage roof.

He believes a crow had picked up the reptile in her beak but dropped it into a garden.

John said: “I think it came as a bit of a shock for the resident when they found a snake in their garden and they did the right thing trying to keep an eye on it.

“I had no idea where she had gone until someone spotted her on the garage roof.

"There were a lot of squawking crows around so I suspect one of them had picked the snake up and then dropped her when they realised they had bitten off more than they could chew.

“After I rescued the snake, a resident living nearby came over and was absolutely delighted as it was her missing pet from a year ago called Angus.

“I was gobsmacked that the reptile had survived so long as snakes aren’t able to produce their own body heat so they rely on their environment to maintain their body temperature. If snakes become too cold they may be unable to feed or move normally, and their immune system will not work properly to fight disease."

Experts believe the lost snake had gone into brumation mode, similar to hibernation.