View Full Version : Snake 'befriends' snack hamster ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


vincent28uk
01-21-06, 02:31 AM
Pictures of happy couple in link


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4627950.stm

Last Updated: Thursday, 19 January 2006, 13:01 GMT


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Snake 'befriends' snack hamster



Aochan, the snake 'seems to enjoy' being with Gohan, the hamster

A rodent-eating snake and a hamster have developed an unusual bond at a zoo in the Japanese capital, Tokyo.

Their relationship began in October last year, when zookeepers presented the hamster to the snake as a meal.

The rat snake, however, refused to eat the rodent. The two now share a cage, and the hamster sometimes falls asleep sitting on top of his natural foe.

"I have never seen anything like it," a zookeeper at the Mutsugoro Okoku zoo told the Associated Press News agency.

The hamster was initially offered to Aochan, the two-year-old rat snake, because it was refusing to eat frozen mice,.

As a joke, the zookeeper said they named the hamster Gohan - the Japanese word for meal.

"I don't think there's any danger. Aochan seems to enjoy Gohan's company very much," said zookeeper Kazuya Yamamoto.

The apparent friendship between the snake and hamster is one of many reported bonds spanning the divide between predator and prey.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1905363.stm

Lioness adopts third baby antelope

Tourists flocked to watch the unlikely pair

A lioness in Kenya has adopted another baby oryx - her third in as many months, game wardens at the northern Samburu National Park have reported.

The lioness is said to allow a female oryx several minutes each day to feed the new-born calf.


The last calf was killed while she was sleeping

The oryx would normally represent a tasty meal to a lion, but this is not the first time the lioness has placed a calf under her protection.

One was seen in her company in December last year, but it was eaten by other lions after two weeks. Another calf was taken away from her in February and placed in a zoo because it showed signs of malnourishment.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4152447.stm

Last Updated: Thursday, 6 January, 2005, 17:01 GMT


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Odd couple make friends in Kenya



Mzee and Owen have become firm friends despite the age gap

A baby hippo rescued after floods in Kenya last week has befriended a 100-year-old tortoise in Kenya.

The one-year-old hippo calf christened Owen was found alone and dehydrated by wildlife rangers near the Indian Ocean.

He was placed in an enclosure at a wildlife sanctuary in the coastal city of Mombasa and befriended a male tortoise of a similar colour.

According to a park official, they sleep together, eat together and "have

become inseparable".

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If enemies can be friends, why cant we especially when we are supposed to be more intelligent, i think its gods way of showing that prey & predator can become friends.

Mosheh Thezion
01-21-06, 02:40 AM
Fascinating....

-MT

Baron Max
01-21-06, 06:08 AM
If enemies can be friends, why cant we especially when we are supposed to be more intelligent, i think its gods way of showing that prey & predator can become friends.

Well, the "day" ain't over yet! When the snake gets hungry and the zoo keepers forget to feed it, just how long do you think that hamster and snake are going to remain "friends"?

As you well know, humans can actually be friendly with other humans for short periods of time. History is full of such examples. But how long does it last? And isn't that the real story ....or do you prefer the short, little, fairytales?

Baron Max

mountainhare
01-21-06, 09:28 PM
Baron Max is right. Anyway can afford to be 'friends' if they have enough food, shelter and water. When this snake gets hungry... bye bye hamster. And then in revenge, the hamster will give the snake indigestion.

Neildo
01-22-06, 07:02 AM
Heh, weird. And I thought the tortoise and the hippo couple was an odd match. (edit: nevermind, didn't see you post that story too)

It's a sad day in this world when predator and prey get along better than humans.

- N

cato
01-22-06, 11:19 AM
the snake has probably been fed frozen mice it's entire life, it probably does not even realize the hamster is eatable. however, if you let the snake starve a bit, I bet it would switch over to instincts and have a nice snack. moreover, look at the size of the hamster, the snake would probably die trying to eat it.