Rare Snake Found In Shipment Of Electronics

TAMPA (CBSMiami/AP) - A rare snake was discovered in a shipment from Puerto Rico to a Tampa company.

The company call the state's hotline for reporting sightings of invasive species after its employees found what they thought was a Burmese python in a shipment of electronics.

Wildlife experts dispatched to take the snake into custody realized it wasn't one of the invasive pythons that's become the scourge of Florida. Instead, they discovered the snake was either a Puerto Rican boa or a Mona Island boa. It's hard to tell those apart without a DNA test, but both species are endangered on their native Caribbean island.

State officials are working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to return the snake to Puerto Rico.

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