I received the snake from my colleague and sometimes part-time boss, Rob Carmichael who runs the Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm in Lake Forest, Illinois. Rob told me the snake was a Hurricane Katrina refugee that came from Audubon Zoo in New Orleans and that's basically all the info that came with it from Audubon. I might be able to dig around and try to contact someone at Audubon to see where and when it was collected, but for all I know [and working at a zoo myself], it could have been an animal that Audubon acquired from another institution thus making the paper trail even more convoluted. I'm inclined though to go along with Phil's assesment and say that it's a fantastic specimen, but until we find a wild one larger than the current record this captive specimen is merely no more than a curiosity.
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Matt Campbell



Big animals, little animals, plants - right down to the sea itself. We need them, not just for their own sake, but because all this has to be here for everybody forever. Only one thing is certain: if we are to preserve our environment and save this priceless wildlife we need much, much more knowledge.

Harry Butler from 'In the Wild With Harry Butler' 1977

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