Back in 2007 we publish some extremely rare images of a pair of snakes mating in the Parco Kennedy just below Barga Vecchia. (article here)
Yesterday was practically the first warm day of the year with people today already starting to complain about the heat (believe it or not)
The change of temperature has also been felt by other beings and not just Barghigiani – this afternoon an example of nature in the raw and taking place just a stone’s throw from the passing cars and people walking their dogs
Two large grass snakes entwined on a path just below the castle in Parco Buozi were busy mating after the winter sleep.
One was quite aggressively biting the other and both were moving in my general direction. I stood in the path with camera ready and waited. They came towards me completely oblivious of my snooping presence. At one point it was difficult to work out which was which, they were just a writhing mass of snake.
Some local people kill these snakes if they see them – snakes are evil is the often held view here, although that too has gradually changed over the past few years – but they do warn to stay away if snakes are mating as they can be dangerous. Nobody actually knows for what reason but they talk in whispered phrases about so and so in this or that village that was chased and whipped by aggressive snakes and one story continues to do the rounds of somebody remained a midget after being whipped by snakes.
This was all taking place in precisely the same place as the last time mating snakes were spied on in this park back in 2007.
Could they be the same performers ?