Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 " If you go into the woods today , you'd better not go alone ..." Pythons May Spread to the Lower 1/3 of US : By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY As climate change warms the nation, giant Burmese pythons could colonize one-third of the USA, from San Francisco across the Southwest, Texas and the South and up north along the Virginia coast, according to U.S. Geological Survey maps released Wednesday. The pythons can be 20 feet long and 250 pounds. They are highly adaptable to new environments. Two federal agencies — the USGS and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — are investigating the range of nine invasive snakes in Florida, concerned about the danger they now pose to endangered species. The agencies are collecting data to aid in the control of these populations. They examined Burmese pythons first and, based on where they live in Asia, estimated where they might live here. One map shows where the pythons could live today, an area that expands when scientists use global warming models for 2100. "We were surprised by the map. It was bigger than we thought it was going to be," says Gordon Rodda, zoologist and lead project researcher. "They are moving northward, there's no question." Burmese pythons were introduced to the USA as part of the pet trade. The first specimens in the wild were discovered in the mid-1990s in the Florida Everglades, released by owners who no longer wanted them, says Skip Snow, a wildlife biologist with the National Parks Service in the Everglades. By 2003, there was evidence the snakes had established breeding colonies in the wild. Florida began regulating their sale and ownership Jan. 1. If federal officials had to worry only about Florida, it would be "decades" before the pythons move into other states, Rodda says. But people keep dumping pythons they don't want into the wild. "We just learned about some that had been released in Arkansas," he says. The Burmese python is not poisonous and not considered a danger to humans. Attacks on humans have involved pet owners who mishandle and misfeed the snakes, Snow says. In Florida, they eat bobcats, deer, alligators, raccoons, cats, rats, rabbits, muskrats, possum, mice, ducks, egrets, herons and song birds. They grab with their mouth to anchor the prey, then coil around the animal and crush it to death before eating it whole. If you see one, don't attempt to engage it. Leave the area, note the location and notify the authorities. ------------------ Ewww ! 'Snake-Whacking Day' doesn't seem so strange now , does it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious_Peaches Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I'm an hour away from the Florida border. A big honking snake better not get anywhere near me if it knows what's good for it. Nasty things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skybluesky Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 "Get these motherf----g snakes out of her motherf-----g Georgia!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious_Peaches Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 That's one thing , at least , that Northern states and Canada can appreciate about winter . "Where dat snake go ? " :beady: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skybluesky Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I thought the St. Pauly girl drove the snakes out of Canada a long time ago that's a joke cause Canadians like beer, and oh, never mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious_Peaches Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Where's Ray when you need him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Rehab again , perhaps , and dealing with 'snakes' or the like of his own ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RonJonSurfer Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I was so hopin' this was about Monty Python. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I tried one of your 'tricks' ,RJ , and hoped people would think that at first . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcM Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 You son of a bitch! I was looking for Monty, too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Gotcha ! 2-0 ! :guitar: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLizard Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Make it three. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Living in Texas , Lizard , it seems you'd better take a careful second look before you sit on the ' throne ' , and as for Marc - reaching into that office vending machine may never be quite as comforting and joyous ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcM Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I doubt it. Vending machine treats are always a joy! "As climate change warms the nation, giant Burmese pythons could colonize one-third of the USA"... Even as I was reading that, I was hoping it was Terry Gilliam in a python suit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Is he Burmese ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcM Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Remember the skit involving the wearing of tiger skins and the taking of a leg? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 That was in Africa , though ... wasn't it ? Yeah , yeah , Africa / Burma - what's the difference in this case , eh ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 I was looking at the title of the thread and got all annoyed already about not living in the US... but now I;m glad I don't Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Just now ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 You're right... not just now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Who was that American fart-sucker from Europe before , remember ? Some young girl who felt her life a waste ( in England , I think ) and that all her dreams would come true in the US ?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Bloof? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted February 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Bingo ! Give that man a doughnut ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted February 23, 2008 Report Share Posted February 23, 2008 Well, she's not the first, and she won't be the last... Just in time for breakfast though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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