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W von Papineäu
at Mon May 12 07:46:48 2008 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by W von Papineäu ]
STAR-NEWS (Pasadena, California) 11 May 08 Putting brakes on great snake migration myth (Susan Abram)
Even a Burmese python could be drawn to Hollywood, given the right offer.
If the climate were just right, and if there were enough of a food source, the python could head west to stretch its 20-foot body out on the sunny shores of Malibu or cool its scales in a Studio City backyard pool.
But the operative word, scientists caution, is "if" - which somehow got lost in all the hysteria recently when researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey released a detailed map explaining a possible westward migration of the Burmese python.
Scientists intended to show that if global warming continues, the python could live comfortably in Western states.
But, instead, the map spawned a giant, herpetology myth.
"Some of the stories in the media seemed to be making the assumption that if an area in the U.S. has a climate similar to that of the native range, then the pythons will become established there, resulting in some fairly sensationalistic reporting," said Robert Reed, an invasive species science specialist with the USGS.
A fear fest followed, with news reports suggesting that the hulking constrictors are already slithering single file, head to tail in a Hands Across America-like fashion toward Western cities and towns - ready to swallow whole babies, pet dogs and cats or anyone else unlucky enough to cross its path.
"This is certainly not what the authors of the study concluded," Reed said. "The range maps simply depict areas in the U.S. with a climate similar to areas in the python's native range."
Native to Southeast Asia, Burmese pythons are some of the largest snakes in the world. They can grow up to 30feet long and weigh about 200pounds.
But because of the exotic pet trade industry and captive breeding practices gone wrong, they often get dumped by overwhelmed owners.
Since 2003, an active breeding population of pythons has been found within Florida's Everglades National Park, where visitors have witnessed wrestling matches between alligator and serpent. One visitor even captured a photograph of the snake that had burst after swallowing a whole alligator.
So far, no wild pythons have been spotted in local mountains.
But the notion that a python, a non-native animal, can survive in many parts of the United States emphasizes the dangers of invasive species on ecosystems, Reed said.
The pythons in the Everglades have been found to eat endangered Key Largo woodrats and rare round-tailed muskrats.
"One of the big things we're worried about is receiving funding to eradicate invasive animals," Reed said.
California already has another invasive snake to worry about - the slippery banded watersnake.
While native to the Carolinas, some Californian reptile lovers thought they would make good pets but quickly discovered the unruly serpents were fond of biting, ate voraciously and had messy habits.
Many were set free in Harbor City, the community west of Long Beach that was also Reggie the alligator's hometown before he was finally snatched and taken to the L.A. Zoo last year.
Now, the community has to deal with breeding populations of the banded watersnake, which can grow up to 4feet long.
A 2005 study by the Nature Conservancy found that $120billion is spent annually in the United States on controlling invasive species - everything from the bamboolike arundo in the Santa Clara River that suffocates other plantlife, to the voracious red fire ant.
"You go to areas where fire ants are, and they just eat everything," said Barry Rice, an invasive species specialist with the Nature Conservancy.
And bull frogs, typical of the East Coast, "are bad because they will eat anything that can fit inside their mouths," he said.
"They are hopping across the landscape and polishing off our native frog species. I have nothing against bull frogs, but we don't need them in California. We have our own cool frogs."
While controlling invasive animals poses a moral dilemma to biologists, it has to be done. The intent of the USGS maps was to emphasize prevention of migration, Reed said.
Unfortunately, each state has different laws on importing and exporting exotic animals and plants. And states do not have the funding to keep a watchful eye on the practice, let alone control it, both Reed and Rice said.
"When you have to put people on the ground to eradicate invasive species, you've already lost the battle," Rice said. "It's really emotionally difficult to do invasive animal control. When people introduce non-native species, they are causing a problem. If those animals have to be controlled, that is what I consider a tragedy.
"It's our fault. People should not introduce organisms into ecosystems because the animals are going to pay."
Meanwhile, some say the weather in California would have to change dramatically for the python to survive because the Golden State's climate is simply not tropical enough.
And although reptiles - a $2billion-a-year industry - are still popular, pythons have fallen off the favorites lists.
"With gas prices and fuel prices, importation costs have skyrocketed," said Steve Sotelo, manager of the Chatsworth-based Reptile Depot.
And owners also can't afford to feed them. As a result, many reptile shops no longer carry pythons, he said.
"Out here in California, the weather gets far too cold for the snake to survive, and it's too dry for the snake to maintain its internal hydration," Sotelo said.
He has only one baby python, but he is not eager to sell it.
"If someone comes in and says `Hey, I just want a big snake,' we usually just refuse to sell it," he said. "There are good, proper owners out there, but I'm OK with people not owning these."
Putting brakes on great snake migration myth
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 CA Press: Brakes on snake migration myth - W von Papineäu, Mon May 12 07:46:48 2008
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