Snake catcher removes deadly two-metre black mamba from home

A snake catcher got a little more than he bargained for recently when he went to remove a snake from a home in Kwa-Zulu-Natal, South Africa.

From the description given to him down the phone, he arrived at the property last Friday expecting to find a Mozambique spitting cobra but instead encountered a 2.3 metre black mamba.

Without quite the right tools for the job, the snake catcher was forced to try to guide the highly venomous reptile into a makeshift cardboard capture box.

After a few anxious moments when the snake was coming close to his legs, the plan worked a treat and the black mamba was safely removed.

The snake will be relocated next month.

Black mambas have a fearsome reputation because their venom is extremely toxic, however attacks on humans are rare and they usually avoid confrontation.