“As a child, you would find me hanging off tree branches or inspecting the earth for bugs,” recalls Iraqi wildlife activist Mahdi Laith, better known as the “snake man of Baghdad” for his widely publicized photos with snakes and other reptiles.

The animal enthusiast tells Al-Monitor that his love for wildlife came from his father. Laith spent his early childhood in London, where his first encounters with wild animals were limited to the zoos and nature parks his family would take him to. Some of the animals he now keeps at home in Kerrada, an upper-middle-class district of Baghdad, are the same ones that fascinated him in the London zoos.

Born outside of Iraq in 1986, Laith and his family spent years living in different countries. They finally came home in 2004, a few months after Baghdad was invaded by American troops. Today the “snake man” manages one of the local branches of his family-owned fast food chain. “I hope to break away eventually and open up my own pet store or sanctuary, a dream that requires funds and sponsorship to materialize.”

“My love extends to all animals, but I have a weak spot for reptiles,” says Laith, whose passion is reflected in a collection of photos that feature him with turtles, iguanas, lizards, parrots, snakes and plenty more.