Jules Farquhar, who is writing a thesis on skink physiology at Monash University and co-runs the Ballarat Snake Catcher service, said he had noticed "a hell of a lot" more call-outs this year.

While snake encounters have not historically been very high around Ballarat due to its colder climate, Mr Farquhar said he had noticed the situation change recently.

He believes increased encounters may be related to the warmer climate - and that snakes could be seeking shelter in people's homes and gardens more often as drought conditions make their usual environment too hostile.

With the hotter weather causing creek-beds - and snake prey - to dry up, as well as reducing the amount of suitable shelter, he thinks the reptiles may be looking for "more stable" conditions in built-up areas.

"They find them by seeking refuge around people's homes," he said.

He said the wood piles, tin, sheds, garden beds and plants as well as easily accessible water and food sources such as rats and frogs meant properties became "snake hotels" during drought conditions.

"This might explain why snake encounters appear to be increasing," he said, adding that further research would be needed to back up his theory.

If correct, he said a warmer climate would mean "a corresponding increase in snakes encounters."

In a normal year, he said he would usually receive a few call-outs in late September, then sightings would increase until November and remain constant until temperatures dropped in late March.

However he told The Courier he had been called out to remove around double the amount of snakes this year compared to the previous six years, with calls beginning in August.

"This season has been noticeably different," he said. "Other snake catchers are reporting similar record-high snake encounters in other parts of Victoria."

Mr Farquhar also noted the presence of a species rarely seen in Ballarat this month. Along with a call to remove several copperhead snakes in the city suburbs, he was also asked to remove a red bellied black snake from a Redan backyard. It was the first time he had seen the species within the city boundaries.

"It is a reasonably built-up suburb we never get calls for, and red bellies are never found in Ballarat, so that was an interesting find," he said.

The spike in snake removal call-outs could be partly attributed to a greater awareness of the snake-catching service, he said.

However, he said he believed the theory linking drought conditions and the more frequent discovery of snakes in people's homes was "a plausible one", which was "based on what we know about the basic physiological needs of reptiles."

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