A "highly venomous" snake is on the loose in California, according to officials.
Police received reports of the snake, believed to be four to five feet long, which they say was spotted in a tree in a residential neighborhood in Santa Ana, California, about 32 miles southeast of Los Angeles, according to a Santa Ana Police Department Facebook post on Sept. 28.
The loose reptile is believed to be a Gaboon viper, which is native to Central, East and West Africa, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo.
"Gaboon Vipers are highly venomous and are not native to North America," according to the police department's post on Facebook.
Here's what to know.
How did the viper get loose?
There's no word
yet on how the snake got loose or whom it belongs.
USA TODAY has contacted the Santa Ana Police Department for more information.
What should you do if you see the viper?
Police ask people to stay away from the snake and not approach it or try to catch or handle it.
Instead, anyone who sees the venomous viper is asked to contact the Santa Ana Police Department’s non-emergency line at 714-834-4211 and report where the snake was spotted.
Snake camouflages with fallen leaves
The snake's head is colored and shaped like a fallen leaf, according to the Smithsonian. Its body color also helps it blend in with leaf litter on the ground.
The snake's diet consists of small to medium birds and mammals, per the zoo. It camouflages into its surroundings and will wait to strike its prey.
"Most snakes strike and release, but this viper holds on until its prey dies," according to the zoo.
The snakes rarely bite humans, and most bites happen only because someone stepped on the snake, but a hungry snake could strike at anything that moves to the side, "so some bites might well be a result of mistaken identity," the zoo said on its website.
Julia Gomez is a Trending reporter for USA TODAY and covers space phenomena, scientific studies and natural disasters. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch out! A massive venomous snake is on the loose
