Swimmer had snake in shorts
Aftenpost | August 19, 2004 | Jonathan Tisdall
A crowd of beachgoers beating the summer heat in Birkeland in Aust-Agder [Norway] ran ashore in panic when they noticed the meter-long grass snake sneak into Geir Røstad's swimming trunks, newspaper VG reports. For nearly half a minute Røstad struggled with his unwanted visitor while shocked onlookers ran away.
"I was standing out in the water when I suddenly felt something moving in my pants. First I thought it was rushes, but it was incredibly difficult to get out," Røstad said. "When I finally got it out after half a minute I saw it was a snake. I dropped it pretty quickly."
Per Pethon, snake expert at Oslo's Museum of Natural History, said that Norway's poisonous viper tends to be the subject of the best snake stories.
Pethon was reasonably sure the culprit here was a grass snake, as they are a type of water snake that like to swim and hunt in water and are common in southern Norway.
"It is completely harmless but relatively temperamental. Many people hold a viper by the tail. If you try that with a grass snake it will turn up and bite your hand," Pethon said.
