A Des Moines neighborhood is on high alert after a woman spotted a python in a tree in her backyard. Barbara Miller, who lives in the Waterbury neighborhood in Des Moines, said she was looking out her kitchen window when she noticed something long, large, and yellow wrapped around a tree. “I looked at it, and I thought, what is that?” Miller said. “At first, I tried to tell myself it was a limb off a tree … then it moved, and I thought … it’s not a limb.”Miller estimates the snake was at least 12 feet long. She believes the snake could have emerged from nearby brush or creek banks during recent flooding. Miller posted a note on a utility pole near her home to alert others. One neighbor, Van Dusseldorf, was unaware of the sighting and was surprised. Despite the shock, Dusseldorf said he’s not overly worried.”I don’t think it would grab me and strangle me, and I know it’s not poisonous.” Jay Tetzlaff, the chief animal officer at Blank Park Zoo, says large snakes like this can be unpredictable, and it’s best not to approach. “A 6-foot or longer python is certainly capable of biting and constricting,” Tetzlaff said. “It’s best to stay away and report it immediately.”Tetzlaff noted that pythons are non-native and not built for Iowa winters, especially if the snake is an albino. He says it can survive during the summer, but not the winter, unless the python learns to hibernate. “This snake needs to be found for its welfare,” Tetzlaff said.Miller said she contacted Des Moines Animal Control after the sighting, and they returned a few days later after another neighbor called, in response to her flyer. A search was conducted, but they were not able to locate the snake.”They didn’t crawl into anything or get too deep into the brush,” Miller said. “So, it still might be out here.”According to Miller, her backyard has been quieter, with fewer animals than before.“I used to have eight squirrels out here every day. I haven’t seen one since,” she said. “I think the snake has been well-fed.”He might not hurt you, but he’ll scare you.”If you spot the python, do not approach it. Contact Des Moines Animal Control at (515) 283-4811.

DES MOINES, Iowa —

A Des Moines neighborhood is on high alert after a woman spotted a python in a tree in her backyard.

Barbara Miller, who lives in the Waterbury neighborhood in Des Moines, said she was looking out her kitchen window when she noticed something long, large, and yellow wrapped around a tree.

“I looked at it, and I thought, what is that?” Miller said. “At first, I tried to tell myself it was a limb off a tree … then it moved, and I thought … it’s not a limb.”

Miller estimates the snake was at least 12 feet long. She believes the snake could have emerged from nearby brush or creek banks during recent flooding.

Miller posted a note on a utility pole near her home to alert others. One neighbor, Van Dusseldorf, was unaware of the sighting and was surprised. Despite the shock, Dusseldorf said he’s not overly worried.

“I don’t think it would grab me and strangle me, and I know it’s not poisonous.”

Jay Tetzlaff, the chief animal officer at Blank Park Zoo, says large snakes like this can be unpredictable, and it’s best not to approach.

“A 6-foot or longer python is certainly capable of biting and constricting,” Tetzlaff said. “It’s best to stay away and report it immediately.”

Tetzlaff noted that pythons are non-native and not built for Iowa winters, especially if the snake is an albino. He says it can survive during the summer, but not the winter, unless the python learns to hibernate.

“This snake needs to be found for its welfare,” Tetzlaff said.

Miller said she contacted Des Moines Animal Control after the sighting, and they returned a few days later after another neighbor called, in response to her flyer. A search was conducted, but they were not able to locate the snake.

“They didn’t crawl into anything or get too deep into the brush,” Miller said. “So, it still might be out here.”

According to Miller, her backyard has been quieter, with fewer animals than before.

“I used to have eight squirrels out here every day. I haven’t seen one since,” she said. “I think the snake has been well-fed.

“He might not hurt you, but he’ll scare you.”

If you spot the python, do not approach it. Contact Des Moines Animal Control at (515) 283-4811.