WARSAW, Poland—The summer snake scare began with an act of oversharing.

A fisherman posted to Facebook a picture of an 18-foot-long python’s freshly shed skin that he had found in a suburban park.

From there it took off, bringing internet panic. It was the peak of July, and a heat wave had brought weather more suitable for pythons than Poles.

“I am scared for my children and my pets,” one Facebook user said.

After reported sightings grew across Poland, local agencies went all out in their snake hunt. The government cleared airspace in the capital last month to let drones pursue the beast. Helicopters, amateur sleuths, a woman dressed as a snake and a celebrity private detective soon elbowed into the quest. A hotline helped police nab three other exotic snakes slithering through town.