First Catch

Your Snake . . .

There was a rare event in Suva in June when a Forestry Depart ment Ranger found a four-foot red snake. Fijian snakes are in short supply these days, although before the mongoose was intro duced into Fiji early in the century, snakes were reported in large numbers.

In those days Fijians regarded them as a great delicacy and then fattened them before roasting them. The system was to put the snake in a big pit and feed it on grated coconut and other fattening foods for weeks or even months. They are sup posed to taste like turkey.

Fiji’s snakes can give a nasty bite, but they are non-poisonous.