Tom,



I totally agree with you...Eradication is simply an exercise in futility to justify more tax dollars to bureaucratic "services" of no solution combined with the instiatable appetite for governmental control over ONE component of the "anthropologic" (man) problem. Left on its own, the Burmese Python (and many of the other vertebrates as well) will become part of the ecosystem and their "new" natural predators will keep them in check without the concern of the government or the "anthropologic" efforts to eradicate them...



This is the natural way of things and animals have been successfully doing this for how many eons before federal bureaucracies decided it was an "anthropologic" source to the problem. To this day, whether its an indigenous species or an invasive one, they will find a way to survive...And make themselves evident to us by simply walking out of the woods into our backyards, or crawl through a fence, depending on where we live...Who'd have thunk it that Falcons would become "urbanized" and become "specialists" regarding the urban bird "pests" there? Go figure...



The "pet trade" of the Burmese Python problem in the ENP (and the surrounding state wildlife areas) is certainly responsible for the origins of this. Regarding the use of the terminology of "pet trade", I mean the herping industry, pet stores, zoos, science, etc. All of these man-made activities have a part to play in this and every one of these activities were - and are - "permitted" (and even scantioned), by both the federal and state (Florida) governments.



The degree(s) to which of each of these activities (and probably many others) "contributed" to the problem is debatable but, each IS responsible in their own right. The reason is simple, it all boils down to the FREEDOM and TRADE (in this case, foreign trade). I say this whether the TRADE was herpetological, zoological or research in origin because it was TRADE that introduced the python here in the first place (they didn't float here on a log).



And of course, the bureaucratic assumption of several "agencies" is that it is the herpetological (private) activity that bears the sole responsibility...That supposition and reasoning is flawed from the outset in that even if the herptological (private) activity was removed - and never existed - there would still be "invasive" tropical vertebrates in the ENP. The reason is simple, escapes from zoos and the scientific communities as a result of negligence, natural disaster, etc would STILL allow for the introduction of "invasive" species into our indigenous habitats. After all, we know that NO animal as ever escaped from a zoo or scientific/research institution...Or dare I say intentionally released by some "concerned" group of citizens to prevent the government sanctioned research?



So using their logic (if you can call it that), controlling the herptological (private) activity will control the problem...This is laughable! Even their definition of "invasive" species requires "loopholes" in that, what about the "migratory" animals that temproarily visit our native habitats? Do they not bring "foreign" hitch-hikers with them during their path across the nation? What about the foreign "diseases" that they undoutably leave for our indigenous species when they're gone?



So, their bottomline is to control one aspect of their defined source of the problem because it is possibly the only activity that they WANT to control...Anthropologic, specifically the private herpetologic activity but, even if they are successful with their current efforts, NOTHING THEY DO WILL SOLVE THE PROBLEM, animals will continue to find a way to exploit new habitats to survive...Just as they've always done whether man is invloved in the equation or not.



As anyone that remembers anything from biology knows this and therefore, this is merely "propaganda" for the true agenda which is government control and justify their reason for existing because their record of "recovering" endangered species or preventing "invasive" species is a dismal failure for anyone to see...Regardless of what their "newsletters" and "press releases" say...



Later,

Jim.
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CSRAJim

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