Residents of a Southern California neighborhood are not at risk of encountering a deadly viper after all—the snake at the center of the scare never existed.
Santa Ana police went to a home near Cypress Avenue on Monday after receiving a report of a suspected Gaboon viper in the backyard.
Reptile experts joined the search in the Santa Ana area, but found neither a snake nor any evidence that the described animal had ever been there.
Investigators contacted the person who reported seeing the snake on Tuesday and asked to review the original photograph.
That was when the account began to unravel.
The person acknowledged that the image had been generated with artificial intelligence and admitted the report was false.
Police said they suspected from the outset that the image could be AI-generated, but still needed to investigate the report and establish what had happened.
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“AI-generated images can look very real, and when false information is shared as fact, it can quickly create unnecessary fear, confusion, and concern in our community,” the Santa Ana Police Department said in an Instagram post.
The department had warned the public about the purported snake on Monday.
“We have received reports of a snake believed to be a Gaboon Viper, last seen in a tree within a residential neighborhood near Main Street and Edinger Avenue,” police said in a Facebook post at the time.
“Gaboon Vipers are highly venomous and are not native to North America,” the department added.
According to Britannica, Gaboon vipers are Africa’s heaviest venomous snakes, weighing as much as 18 pounds. They also possess the longest fangs of any snake, reaching up to 1.6 inches in length.
The heavy-bodied snakes have tan, purple and brown geometric markings. Their velvet-like pattern provides exceptional camouflage, helping the slow-moving vipers disappear among leaf litter and roots on the forest floor.
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