February 20, 2008
Are Pythons Coming to Your Neighborhood?
If you live in southern Florida, Burmese pythons might have already settled into your backyard. These invasive species (see Ecocenter: The Land for more about invasive species) are naturally found in Asia but a population took root in Everglades National Park before 2003—probably pets that were released (or escaped) into the wild—and they are now spreading throughout the region.
Where the snakes end up is limited, though, by the availability of suitable food, shelter and climate. That’s good news for people living in the north; it’s too cold for the snakes. At least for now.
Scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey have mapped out the range of suitable climate for the pythons at present (above) and at the end of the century, after decades of global warming (below). The bad news is that the changing climate could open up new areas to the snakes. Maybe even where you live.
The Burmese python is a scary creature. Anything that would take on an American alligator would be (below, a snake fighting an alligator in Everglades National Park). But what dangers does their spread actually hold?
Bob Reed, a USGS wildlife biologist who helped develop the maps, said in a statement that “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.”? Furthermore, he said, “Several endangered species 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.”?
(Maps courtesy of the USGS. Photo by Lori Oberhofer, National Park Service.)
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[...] released by fed-up pet owners, have graduated from amusing 10-o’clock-news material into a growing, self-sustaining, and hungry population. Park officials have now captured and killed more than 600 [...]
Pingback by The Gist — August 7, 2008 @ 4:24 pm
[...] On the other hand, farming carries its own problems. Among the top 11 species reported from turtle farms, seven are listed endangered or critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. Also in the stock ponds are non-native species from as far away as the U.S. (including the alligator snapping turtle of the deep South, a Thanksgiving-sized turtle if there ever was one). Escapes are inevitable on farms, even for turtles. Escaped, often inbred, native species can harm local gene pools (as with farmed salmon), whereas non-native escapes can become invasive (see Burmese pythons in the Everglades). [...]
Pingback by The Gist — September 10, 2008 @ 8:44 am