Snake season starts in SEQ as catchers warn more than a hundred snakes could be caught in just a week

More than 100 snakes a week are likely to be caught at the peak of the season, experts warn, as Queenslanders are told to be vigilant from now on.

Snake season has officially started across the southeast region as professional catchers prepare themselves to catch more than a hundred a week.

Shocking photos of snakes hanging from gutters and curled up in backyards are starting to fill local Facebook community groups as snake breeding season kicks off.

Snakes have been spotted hanging from gutters.

For Stuart McKenzie from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7, business is booming with the start of the snake and breeding season usually beginning around the end of August.

“The last week has started getting a bit busier,” he said.

“We cover a big area but in a week, we could potentially get over a hundred in a week. That’s around 10 to 15 in a day.”

But there could be a slight delay in the start of the season compared to other years with Mr McKenzie saying it’s relatively cold for this time of year.

“You can basically say the season has started. It’s usually late August to Early September. It’s a bit cooler this year so it might be a bit slower,” he said.

“September and October are generally very busy, then it drops off slightly and picks up again in the peak of summer as it warms up.”

Photos of snakes have been appearing on community Facebook groups.

As breeding season starts, Mr McKenzie said snakes are more likely to be caught inside and in wide open spaces as they’re less interested in hiding and more interested in finding a mate.

“The most common snakes we catch are carpet python and tree snakes, but also red bellies, eastern browns, carpet pythons,” he said.

“During breeding season we do get those big venomous snakes but it’s pretty hard to tell if it’s venomous just from looking at them so we always encourage people not to guess and to take a photo and send it to a professional instead.”

Snakes are more likley to be found in backyards now. Picture: Ali Mu

As the snake season picks up, Mr McKenzie warned south east Queenslanders to be cautious, clean up the back yard, including pet enclosures and keep on top of things.

“Keep the yard nice and maintained. And it also might be a good time to work on recall training for pets,” he said.

“If a dog spots a snake it’s always better they get called back rather than go and chase it.”