A CHRISTMAS walk around Alice Holt Forest turned out to be a festive outing to remember for a shocked mum and her young daughter when a four-and-a-half foot long grass snake slithered under the wheel arch of their car and took up residence in the engine housing.

The non-venomous, native snake had been resting among the Christmas trees on sale at Alice Holt but was disturbed by customers and staff and tried to find a place to hide.

The snake was spotted by a member of the public who saw it disappearing up under the wheel arch of the white BMW and alerted a forest ranger.

While last Saturday’s find left the car owner and her daughter somewhat rattled and “worried about the snake”, Forestry Commission wildlife ranger Glen Boxall came to the rescue.

According to Mr Boxall, while the on-site ranger had attempted to prize the snake out with a stick, he had been unsuccessful and the animal had wrapped itself firmly around the gear box housing in an attempt at camouflage.

It took Mr Boxall almost four hours until he was able to grab the head of what was “a big female snake” and prize her away from the engine.

Describing her as “a beautiful specimen” and the biggest grass snake he had ever seen, Mr Boxall then showed the reptile to the surrounding audience before releasing her, near to a rabbit hole, in the reptile conservation area of the forest, where the damp areas provide an ideal habitat.

He explained that grass snakes are restricters by nature. They are not venomous and will only strike if frightened or provoked. His real concern was that the current warm spell has meant that some wildlife behaviour has been disrupted and creatures like the snake that usually hibernate at this time of year are still active. While this snake was said to be in “fantastic condition”, the problem was that her natural food source may not be available.

Mr Boxall said that with more and more people using areas like Alice Holt for recreational activities, the Forestry Commission had put up signs alerting them to the fact that they might see snakes in the forest. But these had proven counter productive, with some folk actively seeking out the reptiles and antagonising them with sticks.

The signs are no longer there. Instead, the advice is that snakes will not hurt you if they are simply admired from a distance.

“Just leave them alone,” said Mr Boxall.

This case, however, was somewhat different. While the mother and daughter were entertained by cafe staff, Mr Boxall patiently to persuade the snake that the engine of a car was not the best place to be.

He later praised the pair for allowing him the time to extract the animal safely adding that by doing so they had enabled him to “save a fantastic specimen”.