New Jersey third-graders find boa constrictor in classroom

April 27 (UPI) -- A 4-foot boa constrictor discovered by students in a New Jersey elementary school may have been drawn to the smell of the class pet, also a boa, officials said.

Officials at Riverside Elementary School in Princeton confirmed third-graders in Ms. Reilly's class alerted the teacher Tuesday afternoon to the presence of the boa constrictor in the back of the classroom.

A spokeswoman for Princeton schools said the school's science teacher placed the snake, which the children dubbed Zeus, in a cage overnight before turning it over to a Montgomery Township animal control officer.

Officials said the students weren't scared of the snake because Ms. Reilly's class has a pet boa constrictor, a female named Cuddles. They theorized Cuddles' scent drew the other snake to the classroom.

Zeus' origins are unknown, but officials said the snake was in poor health when the students found it.

"This has been a joyous story for us," Riverside Principal Valerie Ulrich told NJ.com. "Our discovery saved the snake's life."

"The teacher used the surprising discovery as a teachable moment and asked the students to write a fictional story imagining where the snake came from," Princeton Schools spokeswoman Brenda Sewell said.