Posted by:
tunc
at Wed Jul 8 13:09:33 2009 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by tunc ]
I have several questions related to both the study and interpetation of results. Much of my concerns about design are likely to be answered by the fact this is a first study and may have limited resources.
Why use adults when adults may be temperature adapted to southernmost Florida leading to animals that respond poorly to South Carolina winter temps?
Would not using a much larger number of neonates released in the late summer be better in that those which may have some genetic predisposition to survive in colder temperatures may be present in the sample?
Given the genetic influences present to survive more northerly climate would be present in the native populations, has any analysis of the genetics of the US feral population been performed vis a vis the genetic profile of Burmese pythons across the native range?
All three questions lead to different interpretations of the results, not simply survivorship or not, although high survivorship of the sample indicates potential for naturalization in South Carolina, lack of survival does not.
American alligators are well-known for the capacity of adults to live well north of the presumptive original range, they just can't reproduce successfully north of North Carolina.
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RE: Burmese Python Study @ SREL questions - tunc, Wed Jul 8 13:09:33 2009