Deadly snakes hatch from Australian toddler’s egg collection

A 3-year-old Australian boy's collection of eggs turned deadly when they hatched into venomous snakes, according to the Associated Press.

Kyle Cummings likes wildlife, according to his family, so when he found 9 eggs on his lawn near Townsville, Queensland, he thought he'd bring them inside for further investigation. He put them inside a plastic takeout container and stored them in his bedroom closet. Big mistake.

He could have been killed, reptile specialist Trish Prendergast told the Post. The eggs hatched into eastern brown snakes, one of the most venomous land snakes in Australia.

[ Related: Python bounty hunters are latest tool in Florida eradication effort ]

Cummings' mother, Donna Sim, found seven of the snakes squirming around in the box within her son's closet. An unsettling sight to be sure, but even worse once she found out the baby snakes are apparently just as venomous as their adult counterparts. Thankfully, their teeth were probably too tiny to break the skin.

The family turned the box over to North Queensland Wildlife Care, which released them back into the wild.

If the venom had entered a cut or the boy's mouth, he could have died, according to the report. Not such a cuddly plaything, after all.

[ Related: Venomous snakes harbour deadly brain-swelling virus ]

Eastern brown snakes are speedy predators and one of the most common snake bites in Australia.