THE AGE (Melbourne, Australia) 28 March 04 Exotic reptile amnesty launched

If you are hiding a foreign python in your broom cupboard or a boa constrictor in your bathtub, the government is giving you a chance to come clean.

Owners of illegal exotic reptiles have until May 24 to surrender their scaly friends to authorities and avoid jail terms of up to 5 years and fines of up to $110,000.

Announcing the amnesty at Melbourne Zoo, federal Environment Minister David Kemp said foreign reptiles posed a serious threat to the Australian environment.

"These exotic reptiles can carry quite serious pathogens - diseases which can infect our native wildlife and cause a significant loss of species," he said.

Dr Kemp said there were large numbers of exotic reptiles in the community and demand for them was encouraging smugglers to try to sneak them into the country.

The lengths smugglers would go to were highlighted by a Swedish man caught at Darwin airport in October last year with four highly venomous king cobras and four emerald tree boas strapped to his legs.

The director of the Australian Venom Research Unit, Dr Ken Winkel, said owners of exotic reptiles should hand them in for the safety of their family and friends.

If someone was bitten by a venomous exotic snake the first problem would be identifying it and the second would be getting hold of the anti-venom to its bite, he said.

"This is a major challenge for doctors in Australia who might be facing the possibility of treating a bite from a snake of which they have very little or no experience," he said.

Dr Winkel said reptile owners had been killed by their own snakes overseas and, with snakes being seized in Australia for which there was no anti-venom available, it could happen here.

Scientists are also concerned exotic reptiles could begin breeding in the wild and have a catastrophic effect on native species, as in Guam where the introduced brown tree snake is wiping out native bird species.

Already in waterways around Sydney a population of the red-eared slider turtles has established itself.

Authorities do not know how many exotic reptiles are out there but say previous amnesties yielded hundreds of creatures.

Anyone ready to hand over their poisonous pet can contact the amnesty hotline on 1800 684 447.
Exotic reptile amnesty launched

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