An extremely venomous viper snake is on the loose in an Orange County neighborhood as police officials urgently warn California residents to maintain their distance. 

The Gaboon Viper snake was last seen in a tree in a residential neighborhood, according to the Santa Ana Police Department. It is estimated to be four to five feet long.  

'Gaboon Vipers are highly venomous and are not native to North America. We are asking the public to please be aware of your surroundings. If you see the snake, DO NOT approach or attempt to handle it,' the police department wrote in a Facebook statement.

Joel Ciprian, an Orange County resident, took a photo of the Gaboon Viper in his backyard and immediately sent it to the police. 

'A Gaboon Viper is a very serious snake. It's a very serious matter,' Officer Natalie Garcia told CBS Los Angeles. 

Social media users have since raised concerns about the image with some claiming the photo provided by Ciprian was AI-generated.

'This is AI generated. The pattern becomes warped past the first 1/3, and there is a stick penetrating the rear body of the snake,' wrote one Facebook user.

'I wish it was AI, It's in my backyard, and it's scary,' Ciprian told the outlet.

Garcia said the department is treating the apparent sighting as a 'real snake.'

The Southern California Herpetology Association and Rescue have launched an extensive search alongside authorities to help identify the snake as soon as possible.

According to the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, the Gaboon Viper's natural habitat is the rainforest in areas of Central, East and West Africa. 

The appearance of a Gaboon Viper has a distinct 'coloration and a broad head, which mimics a fallen leaf, camouflaging it among leaf litter on the forest floor.' 

It has a wide, triangular head that can look similar to a pair of horns. Ciprian noted the horn-features caught his attention at a closer look.

'When I looked at it close, I was like, "Oh, no, it's a venomous snake",' he told the outlet. 

Their average size can reach between four to six feet as one of the world's largest and heaviest vipers with the highest venom yield compared to other snake types. 

The snakes have a 'placid nature' and typically only bite humans when they are 'stepped on before it has an opportunity to get away.' 

'In addition to its unwillingness to bite, the viper can control whether it injects venom and how much, so the result of a strike can range from no effect to rapid death. A hungry snake will strike at almost any sideways movement, so some bites might well be a result of mistaken identity,' according to the Smithsonian website.

If captured, the snake will be quarantined and transported to an exotic animal sanctuary for proper care, according to Santa Ana police. 

There have been no snake-related injuries reported in the Orange County, California, area at this time.  

Santa Ana police officials have encouraged anyone who has seen the snake to maintain their distance and call their non-emergency line to notify officers.

The Daily Mail has reached out to the Santa Ana police department and the Southern California Herpetology Association and Rescue for comments or additional details on the investigation.