Did yall see NATURE on ETV about Burmese pythons loose in Florida?

[raccoon]

Irresponsible people released pet Burmese pythons into the wild, and in FL they have proliferated. These are big honking snakes. They can be as thick as a telephone pole, and about 20 feet long.

I think the National Guard or somebody should be called out to get rid of them.

And I sure hope they don't migrate north. :scared:

[WeDidIt]

1. The recent cold snap should ahve killed off a lot of them

These are tropical snakes and they are not equipped to survive freezing temperatures.

[lpbk2713]

3. But the ones that survived will adapt.

And future generations will be more able to tolerate lower temps.

[ellenfl]

7. we hope you're right. however, the glades did not freeze and i'm

not sure how long the 40 degree temps were sustained. we had sustained temps in the 40s for 10 days but I live 50 miles north of miami. they might have warmed up enough to have less wildlife damage. we lost most of the iguanas (and anoles, too, i'm sure) and fish in our small lake. as for the national guard, the state has declared open season on these critters so our 2nd amendment devotees get to shoot them up.

ellen fl

[GoCubsGo]

11. The anoles should be fine

We have them up here in the Carolinas, where freezing temperatures are a fairly normal occurrence. They have been surviving such conditions for eons.

[ellenfl]

26. glad to hear that! eom

[Ex Lurker]

37. the article I read estmated about 50% of the wild population was killed off

re: the post below about survivors adapting. The research seems to indicate they may be incapable of doing so. Their brains don't sense cold as a hazard. I don't think they'll ever be completely eliminated in South FL, but the predictions of their spreading to other parts of the country look to be exaggerated.

[postulater]

2. Do they eat Asian carp?

We could use them in the Great Lakes.

[Uncle Joe]

44. A quick fable regarding the kingdom overrun by mice.

The King was pissed because the mice ate his cheese and pooped on his silverware.
His counselors told him we need cats to run off the mice.
So the King brought cats from far and wide to run off the mice.
The cats multiplied without restraint and the King grew despondent because the cats drank his milk and coughed up hairballs in his bed.
His counselors told him we need dogs to scare away the cats.
So the King brought dogs from far and wide to scare away the cats.
The dogs multiplied without restraint and the King grew angry because the dogs humped his leg and pooped on his lawn.
His counselors told him we need Lions to run off the dogs.
So the King brought Lions from far and wide to run off the dogs.
The Lions multiplied without restraint and the King grew frightened because the Lions ate his horses and bit his courtesans on their asses.
His counselors told him we need elephants to chase off the Lions.
So the King brought elephants from far and wide to chase off the Lions.
The elephants multiplied without restraint and the King grew depressed because the elephants sat on his carriage and made the dog poop on his lawn look quaint.
His counselors told him we need mice to scare off the elephants.
So the King brought mice from far and wide to scare off the elephants.
The mice multiplied without restraint, but the King didn't give a shit anymore and lived semi-happily ever after.

:)

[postulater]

45. Good one!

:toast:

[Uncle Joe]

46. Cheers, I heard if you know how to clean carp properly, they don't taste so bad.

:toast:

[KittyWampus]

4. Yes, while waiting for Jane Austin's "Persuasion" to air.

[KharmaTrain]

5. Yep...And Also Other Locations...

Here in Illinois they're battling with a Chinese trout that got loose in the Illinois River and is there's a battle with other states about ways to keep the fish out of the Great Lakes. There's also the ongoing Zebra Mussell problem that is clogging up intakes in the Lakes. The problem is man has altered the environment and many times with little thought as to the long term implications. The problem is any sanctions or laws prohibiting importing exotic animals tend to be lax and there's always a thriving black market for animals like big snakes and other critters that get too big to handle and are just let loose. I think there's more awareness now, but as long as humans move from place to place, so will other life forms and not always in a good way.

[hlthe2b]

6. There have been some increcible youtube videos of them

I recall one where the very large python literally explodes after ingesting an alligator. Some amazing consequences to a few highly irresponsible people.

[Skidmore]

8. I don't understand those who think snakes make good pets.

Snakes are reptiles, cold-blooded reptiles with little reptilian brains. They eat, hibernate, and reproduce. Period. They do not form anything resembling the bond that humans believe they form with dogs, who are social animals. Snakes belong in the wild, controlling the rodent and insect populations, not in peoples' homes.

[GoCubsGo]

9. There is actually a controlled study going on in SC

A lab on the Savannah River Site has a bunch of them in an enclosure, where they are monitoring their survival in the local climate. It's been awful cold here lately. I don't think may of them will make it.

As for getting rid of the ones in Florida, it's a bit late to get rid of them. Hopefully, the frigid weather they had last month will knock the populations back, but I don't think it's going to exterminate them.

[raccoon]

12. You. are. kidding. I hope. nt

[GoCubsGo]

15. No. Why do you have a problem with it?

The snakes are in an enclosure, and they can't get out. What's your problem with that?

[raccoon]

18. Those humongous snakes give me the creeps. I usually don't have much

of a problem with snakes, but those are so....big.

I guess in a way it makes sense to see how they adapt.

Armadillos migrated here from FL, but I don't have a problem with them.

[hlthe2b]

17. You do know that there are Indian pythons living

well into the more temperate zones of China and the Himalayas?


Here is a link for a USGS study on possible habitats, which given global warming could extend through much of the US

http://www.usark.org/uploads/PythonClimate_Rodda_etAl.doc

[GoCubsGo]

19. Yes.

I also know that the USGS is one of the groups funding the South Carolina study. I also know, as a biologist, that "similar climates" do not always translate into survival by introduced species.

[hlthe2b]

10. Python Snakes, In Florida, Could Spread To One Third Of US

Wildlife managers are concerned that these snakes, which can grow to over 20 feet long and more than 250 pounds, pose a danger to state- and federally listed threatened and endangered species as well as to humans," said Bob Reed, a USGS wildlife biologist at the Fort Collins Science Center in Colorado, who helped develop the maps. "Several endangered species," he noted, "have already been found in the snakes' stomachs. Pythons could have even more significant environmental and economic consequences if they were to spread from Florida to other states."

Control of exotic species is often prohibitively expensive once they have become established. Therefore, prevention through screening and risk assessment is of great importance, especially when protecting continental areas from invasive reptiles, said USGS invasive snake expert Gordon Rodda, also of the Fort Collins center. USGS scientists and their partners are seeking to compile the scientific data necessary to guide management efforts to prevent further introductions, control existing populations of snakes, and contain their spread.

Currently, scientists with the USGS and Everglades National Park are investigating the behavior and biology of these snakes - that is, what are their requirements for survival? This information will help refine predictions of where the snakes might go next and their likelihood of survival. USGS researchers are also conducting a risk assessment for nine species of giant constrictors (including boa constrictors and yellow anacondas) that are prevalent in the pet trade and as such, potential invaders in the United States.

more
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080223111456.htm

[raccoon]

14. Oh, God, I got to move to OH, IN or someplace. nt

[marmar]

24. Yet another reason to be glad for living in the Great Lakes region.....

..... those cold winters do serve a purpose.

[raccoon]

13. Why not make this a New Deal type create-jobs program, like the WPA?

A "Get Rid of the Pythons" program?

[1776Forever]

16. Some people are nutty when it comes to snakes!

Coming from Ohio and having lived in TX and Florida at one time I now that some people in both those states seem to love snakes. I remember back in 1979 going into a house in TX and seeing a lighted box in the living room with a live rattle snake in it. This was like a fish tank to them. It was odd to me for sure! And in Florida the neighbors I right next door had "pet" snakes and one of the big ones got loose and was found on another persons front porch a couple of days later. This isn't "new" but it is scary!

[ChiciB1]

20. Not Only Are The "Released" Pet Snakes A Problem Here In Florida....

we also are having IGUANAS & MONITORS invading my area! I realize people have different tastes for pets, but to me there are SOME pets that don't adapt well, and people simply let them go! These people are insensitive, not only to the pet, but to how it impacts urban, suburban living!

Exotic bird smuggling is ANOTHER issue that really angers me! Too many people just don't know HOW to care for them once they get them home! While not the "danger" that snakes and other reptiles cause, it's simply UNFAIR to the pets in the first place!!

I raise a LOT of little baby squirrels who have either fallen out of nests, OR from landscape people who trim trees and injure them, but I always have KNOWN that they belong "to nature" even though I LOVE them dearly!

[Lorien]

32. Those non-indigenous animals have quite a negative impact on our environment

which is why menu books for iguana meat are passed out in Hispanic communities in South Florida.

Now if there were only a way to get rid of the carnivorous Cuban tree frog as well!

P.S- thank you for caring for the baby squirrels. I've worked with raccoons, and it rips your heart out when they have to return to nature...but they must!

[ChiciB1]

38. No Prob. With The Squirrels!!! My Very Favorite Little Critter! Have Raised

close to 50 already. I nurse them until they are ready to go into walk in cages that have a "swing" door at the top. When I think they are ready to explore I go out with them and let them venture around, leaving the swing door open. I keep close watch as they play, then see if they want to come back into the cubby that is built inside the cage. If they decide on their own that they would rather build their own nest, then they just don't return through the swing door.

I name them as I get them and when first released they will come when I call them However, within about 3 or 4 months they want to do their own thing. I would LOVE for them to stay with me, and many still hang around because I'm always feeding... they just don't like being "cuddled" like when they were babies. They still know me and my voice and come when I do a general call for all the squirrels around to get peanuts and sunflower seeds. Right now because of the holidays, I bought up all the "extra" holiday nuts and they are getting very spoiled with the fancier ones. Filberts, hazelnuts, almonds, pecans etc.

They are really lovable and adorable and play just like little kittens as they grow. But they do have some very sharp nails and at times it looks like I've run through barbed wire! I even got two tattoos of squirrels on my lower ankle, and two tattoos on my other ankle of my chocolate labs!

I'm an animal PUSH-OVER! BTW, in Texas armadillo is a staple Bar-B-Que dinner! As with snakes, they say it tastes like PORK! Me?? I'm into veggies!!



It's really a crying shame that so many people are so irresponsible and it's something that really riles me.

[marmar]

21. I've seen an estimate of the Florida python population at 30,000......

[Blue_Tires]

22. as a kid i remember being more worried about killer bee migration

than the USSR lobbing some ICBMs on my neighborhood...

AND I'M STILL HERE!!! YOU HEAR THAT YOU DUMBASSED KILLER BEES!!!!

[TwilightGardener]

27. LOL! Sorry, I'm still afraid of killer bees, more so than pythons. I can outrun a python.

[hlthe2b]

33. 3-7 mph on land; faster in the water

I frankly wouldn't want to test that premise.

[TwilightGardener]

35. I can't outswim it, I'll give ya that.

[xchrom]

23. Recommend

[TheCowsCameHome]

25. Send them over to the Limbaugh mansion for some contaminated meat.

"Come on out fatboy, your friends are here to see you"

[TwilightGardener]

28. I feel bad for them. It's not the snakes' fault. I hope there's a humane control for them.

[Lorien]

29. We also have giant iguanas in South Florida

during the recent freeze they were going into hibernation and literally falling out of the trees. People were picking them up and throwing the stiff iguanas into the back seat of their cars...only to have the animals thaw out and wake up once they had the heat on and were on the road!

[Cleita]

30. Another reason for staying away from there.

I never cared for Florida anyway as a place to live and always though it should just be a national park for the preservation of the everglades and the ocean species.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

31. Maybe they'll eat those monkeys released from that Tarzan movie from the thirties.

[nashville_brook]

50. wrong part of Florida.

[Bigmack]

34. Ummmmmmm..... python......

Tastes like chicken!

Seriously.

[GoCubsGo]

42. They make nice boots, too.

And, belts, and shoes, and handbags...

[flvegan]

36. Honestly, some animals just shouldn't be "pets"

And this is one type of them. Big cats, primates, giant snakes...no. And quit selling those big damn spiders, too. I swear, I hear of any sort of proliferation of those damn things spreading here, I'm moving to the Space Station.

Oh yeah...and pit bulls. :popcorn:

[hlthe2b]

40. Ahh... don't lump in pitbulls

especially after the loss Friday of this guy--Cesar Milan's beloved "Daddy"

[flvegan]

41. Oh

I assure you, I'm kidding. I put it there JUST to not get answers from the usual haters of the breed adding them to that short list.

I run a pit bull rescue of all things!

And I didn't hear of Milan's loss. Beautiful boy.

[hlthe2b]

43. Thumbs up

I really adore the breed. When free of destructive human influences, they can make fantastic pets. As much as I like Denver, they are one of those regressionary cities with pitbull bans (and morons working in animal control that will euthanize boxer mixes and anything that even vaguely resembles a pitbull). I remember when I was little, the same level of anger was waged at dobermans and Rotties.... If only common sense could prevail (and strict felony charges with teeth to go after the asshole humans that are the problem).

[jmowreader]

39. People have released some insane shit into the Florida ecosystem

In the late 1950s, for some reason no one's really sure of, an aquarium fish farm owner in Florida released a shitload of Oscars (you know, those aquarium fish that are about the size of a Chihuahua) into the canals around Dade County--where they established themselves. Now there's an Oscar fishery and people are catching them to eat. This is one species that should NOT be managed by catch-and-release; large Cichlids will spawn if kept wet. (There's a Tilapia fishery there too with the same rules: catch all you want, throw none back, take them home and EAT the fuckers because it's the only way we're ever going to get rid of them.

[bvar22]

47. Pygmy Rattler MUCH more dangerous....

...than these huge Pythons.
Anyone paying the slightest bit of attention should be able to spot something as big around as a telephone post and 20' long.
Nobody is going to get bitten or "surprised" by a Burmese Python while working around the house or garden.

[malaise]

48. Was it really irresponsible owners or

hurricanes? Florida had some serious hurricane damage first with Andrew and then several others including four in 2004.

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

49. Some of each according to the PBS program

The pythons are eating some endangered bird species - also alligators and deer.

[Dappleganger]

51. That reminds of the time a couple years ago on an airboat tour in the Glades...

the engine caught on fire and we were stuck out in the middle of nowhere, about 15 of us plus the captain. All except our family and the captain were German tourists, too. While we sat there for an HOUR, in the middle of the Everglades waiting for a replacement boat (which broke down, too!), the captain told us we should be more worried about the snakes than the gators.

Our family understood what he meant right away (about the pythons), but it took a few minutes for the Germans to understand. When they finally did you should've heard the panic they went into, LOL! BTW, we took some amazing pictures of wildlife while we waited out in the heat.

[Ghost in the Machine]

52. Python eats Gator in the Everglades

MIAMI --A python's eyes were apparently bigger than its stomach. Scientists in Florida are puzzling over a Burmese python that scarfed down a six-foot alligator before its stomach ruptured.They found the carcasses in an isolated part of Florida's Everglades National Park. Photos show the gator's hind legs and tail sticking out of the 13-foot snake's ruptured gut.The Miami Herald reported that scientists can't figure out how the snake got the critter down. The snake's head is also missing.Experts say the clash is interesting, but it also shows the exotic snakes are competing with gators to top the food chain in the Everglades.Park biologist Skip Snow said he's documented 156 python captures in the last two years.

http://www.npoore.com/blog/2005/10/python-eats-gator-stomach-ruptures.html