This isn't a joke; far from it in fact but this is so unusual it's worth a read.
This woman was mowing her lawn in Silsbee, Texas, when a hawk dropped a snake on her - and then both went on the attack. Peggy Jones was left terrified as the panicked serpent bit her and the hawk clawed to retrieve its prey.
She suffered cuts and puncture wounds to her face and arms as she tried to fight off the flurry of fangs and talons. The ordeal began when the hawk dropped the 4.5ft snake - possibly a rattlesnake - and it curled itself around her arm. She said:
"I was violently shaking my arm trying to get the snake off. It just wrapped and squeezed tighter and tighter and was striking in my face. Then the hawk appeared just as fast as the snake had. It grabbed the snake and pulled like it was going to carry it away while I was screaming the whole time."
The hawk made four dives hitting her in the face with its wings and grabbing with its razor-sharp talons before prising its dinner free. Doctors found the snake had not injected any venom and Peggy was released bandaged and with antibiotics.
What an incredible story. And how lucky was she that the snake didn't inject? I have experience of this from South Africa where many types of venomous snakes abound and you have to learn about the buggers if you go there to live. It seems that snakes don't always inject venom if they don't feel threatened and inflict what is known as a 'dry' bite. I know of a case where a cobra got into a house and because this toddler repeatedly struck it with his rattle, the snake struck. The parents rushed the baby to the hospital where they discovered SIX sets of fang marks on the child. And guess what? Every single one was a dry bite. They surmised that the snake struck to defend itself but, perhaps sensing it was just dealing with a baby, didn't go for the kill. And I heard many similar tales during my time there.
One of my staff there, a young lad, actually kept a baby boomslang (tree snake) as a pet and carried it everywhere in his pocket despite the fact that it packed its full complement of haemotoxic venom, which at that time had no known antidote and that's a fact. That said, I understand that the boomslang is one of the most placid snakes there is. I still thought he was mad!!
But here's the thing. The snake in the story must have been mightily alarmed being repeatedly attacked and in fear for its life yet still only delivered dry bites. That lady is surely one lucky person.