A large snake was spotted slithering across a footpath near The Avenue yesterday.

The python, believed to be around four feet long, was seen on Lovers Walk in Southampton.

Southampton Reptile has confirmed the snake in question is a royal python - python regius.

University of Southampton student Charley Peters has spoken of his shock at encountering the snake.

Daily Echo:

The 19-year-old said: “I was walking down Lovers Walk, which is near my flat. I was walking along the path, and I suddenly saw this snake on the path in front of me.

“I jolted backwards; I have never seen anything like this before. I was really confused when I saw it.

“The thought that there’s a python where I live is pretty scary in itself.

“I didn’t want to go anywhere near it.”

The snake is non-venemous and instead constricts its prey. In its native habitat - West and Central Africa -the species lives in grasslands, shrublands, and forests.

It is also known as a ball python, due to the fact it is known to curl into a ball when threatened.

Charley added: “As it’s not a native species to the UK so it must be someone’s pet.

“It looked quite nervous, but I warned a few other people about it.

"I called the RSPCA but they said they couldn't do anything as it could move by the time they arrive."

READ MORE: Beloved dog ‘barely alive’ after being bitten by snake makes miraculous recovery

This comes nearly one year after an 18-foot python escaped its owner’s home in Chandler’s Ford.

The incident shocked thousands of people across the country and a petition was launched to ban people from keeping snakes as pets.

The RSPCA sent out a warning earlier this month following hundreds of reported snake sightings in the UK this year.

RSPCA senior scientific officer Evie Button said: "The RSPCA urges all pet snake owners to be extra vigilant at this time of year, invest in an enclosure suitable for the particular species and make sure that enclosure is kept secure - and locked if necessary - when unattended."