The workers at Tampa International Airport discovered a 4 foot boa constrictor that was packed in a passenger's luggage, authorities said Friday.
The Transportation Security Administration said in a statement that the coiled reptile was discovered as the baggage passed through an X-ray machine.
Images posted by the agency showed the animal near a pair of shoes and what appeared to be a laptop.
The agency said so.
The agency says it routinely screens pets, but animals should never be placed in an X-ray machine. It is up to the airline to decide whether it will allow a pet on board.
In 2019, a loose 15-inch ring-necked snake was found near a TSA checkpoint at Newark Liberty International Airport when a passenger left it behind, the agency said.
The year before, TSA workers found a python wrapped in what appeared to be a stocking hidden in a computer hard drive. The passenger, who was headed for Barbados, was fined and the snake confiscated.