Thanks Upscale,

It is nice to hear an intelligent arguement from someone who actually lives here.

I agree. Used to be that you could drive into a neighborhood, turn over some boxes and walk out with some nice local snakes. Since the eighties, the number of native species found declined with masive overdevelopement of this area. Most the snake hunters I know go now west of 27 and north to Belle Glade as hunting is very poor to the south. Snake hunting is not permitted in the park or the indian reservations, which doesn't leave a whole lot of dry land to explore.

It is true that the real glades are a mixture of sawgrass swamp and cypress hammock. Not a whole lot of ground that is high enough above water level to safely incubate eggs of a large non-native species-that nests would be impossible to find. Certainly, nests should be found without too much difficulty. Gator nests are easily turned up.

Fire ants have been a plague here but even they do not eat egg shells so once again, any that were laid would still be found.

This debate is not going to be resolved till someone actually has pictures to back up their claims.

I have seen Florida Panthers three times in my life (in the wild) also, once dead on the turnpike near Port St Lucie and once in a local Zoo and yet another as a legal captive for a nature center. I have followed a black bear through the woods of Lantana. I have caught almost every type of snake one can find in South Florida (except tantilla) and even caught a leucistic Dekay Brown Snake.

I caught a Burm (about 7') on the Griffin road canal. Aside from the machete wound to its neck, it was clean-obviously a captive animal.

In my 50 years here I have seen plenty and have a pretty good idea of what it would take for a non native species to be extablished here (I am on record with F&G for the discovery of establish pops of two invasive species).

Unlike some who posted here (no offence) I have been here and have experience enough to post an informed opinion. So I think until someone actually shows me some hard evidence, I will stick to my opinion. If Burms are breeding out there then it shouldn't take a genius to find and photo the evidence.

Before I state something as true I just want to see the evidence. That is reasonable.

Frank
-----
"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

[ Show Entire Thread ]