A retired social worker was left shocked after finding a snake trying to eat a frog in her back garden pond before managing to film its miraculous escape.
Niki Bodell, 55, captured footage of the 3ft reptile with the frog's head in its mouth at her countryside home in Evesham Worcs., last Thursday (6/7).
Despite seeming destined to be the snake's lunch, the amphibian somehow managed to make a lucky escape after an epic struggle in the water.
Mum-of-two Niki said: “We recently got a new wildlife pond installed to replace our Koi Carp to see if we could get any frogs in the garden.
“We went down to tend the pond to see if we could spot any, but instead we were confronted by this huge snake.
"We didn’t want to interfere with nature so let the animals battle it out."
Niki first thought someone’s pet had escaped so put the video on Facebook to locate the owner, but the replies revealed the reptile was in fact a grass snake.
She added: “"Of all the animals we wanted to attract, we had no idea it would be a snake.
“It’s really educated me as I didn’t know an indigenous snake could even be that big, but at least it wasn’t an escaped python.”
The pond was built about four weeks ago, but despite their slithery encounter, Niki hopes it won’t put people off getting one installed in their own back garden.
She said: “The pleasure a small wildlife pond can bring is just wonderful especially seeing all the creatures it attracts.
"It’s a really lovely addition to your garden even if you only get a few frogs.
“Of course I feel very sorry for the frog in our case, but that’s just nature and he did manage to escape even if his heart was racing at a mile a minute when we found him.”
Confirming the reptile was a grass snake, a spokesperson for Worcestershire Wildlife Trust said: "Grass snakes are the biggest native snake in the UK; a mature female can grow to over one metre in length.
"Whilst they may be troublesome for frogs and toads, they’re harmless to humans.
"Snakes may have a slithery reputation with some people but, just as they eat frogs and toads, they, in turn, can be meals for badgers, foxes, hedgehogs and some birds.
"Numbers of grass snakes have been declining due, in large part, to habitat loss and, as with all native reptiles in the UK, it is illegal to harm or kill them."
