Vic, first these snakes are here to stay. By their own admission there are tens of thousands established in the 4,000 plus square mile Everglades Wilderness Area. This includes far more area than just the National Park including the Big Cypress National Preserve, Fakahatchee State Preserve, etc. Secondly the DNA studies show that ALL these snakes originated from a few animals and are all related. Third until post Hurricane Andrew there were NO reproducing populations of Burmese Pythons anywhere in Florida. This bill and propaganda statements concerning damage they will do is not based on science but simply imflammatory speculation to scare the public at large in order to get support and votes. The idea that these snakes will move south 75 miles to Big Pine Key and eat the diminutive Key Deer is ridiculous. Big Pine is about 75 miles south of the mainland located in the Florida straits. The current that runs btween Florida and Cuba joining the Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean is so swift these snake NOR anything else other than Manatees and Crocodiles have ever been able to colonize Florida. That is why we have NO West Indian herps here in Fl. because herps found in Cuba only 90 miles fom Key West would thrive here could they reach Florida by natural means. There is only one road to Big Pine and one bridge alone is 7 miles long and is a pain for motorist much less Pythons. This is a ridiculous assumption to be made public. They are on Key Largo but Key Largo is the northernmost Key and can be reached thru Mangrove swamps easily. Not so with Big Pine and the other lower Keys.Going Key to Key south would be impossible because of the one road, lengthy bridges, and a host of cars headed south to do the "Duval Crawl". Some of you will know what that means and leads to great fun and giant hangovers.lol..It has yet to be determined what effect these snakes will have long term on the ecology of the Eveglades but one thing is certain and that is THEY ARE HERE TO STAY. Any new legislation will NOT change this fact. The entire bill is being pushed by special interest groups that have always in my lifetime tried to prevent the private sector from having herps of any kind. The real agenda is another law aimed at restricting our personal freedoms and our pursuit of happiness guaranteed by the Constitution. Both PIJAC and USARK are working diligently to fight these bills and the herp community should join both to oppose these in a professional way. USARK is severely underfunded and Andrew is doing a GREAT job considering what he has to work with. Please, for once, lets come together with one common goal and win this fight. Join PIJAC and USARK and fight the American way with our right to vote and the effect of contacting the powers that be and letting them know YOU ARE OPPOSED TO THIS BAD LEGISLATION which is NOT based on science but histeria and wild speculation. Sorry for the rant...
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Tom Crutchfield
www.tomcrutchfield.com

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