Thread Rating:
03-30-2012, 04:11 AM
Sometimes when man creates a huge problem that destroys the balance of the ecosystem, manâs best friend must come in and sort it out.
Oanow reports that Jake and Ivy, two Labradors from Alabama's Auburn University, were recently called to the swamps of Florida to find a formidable non-native species: the Burmese Python.
Brought to Florida by the exotic pet trade, and set free in the Everglades, the Southeast Asian snakes are normally about 12 feet long but can reach lengths of up to 19 feet.
Opportunistic eaters, pythons have all but wiped out marsh rabbits, opossums, and raccoons in the southern region of Everglades National Park, according to a nine-year study.
Terry Fischer and Craig Angle of Auburnâs EcoDog program traveled to Florida to pick up samples of the speciesâ scent and then imprinted the dogs with the essence of Burmese python.
âWe found the use of detection dogs to be a valuable addition to the current tools used to manage and control pythons,â said Christina Romagosa, of AUâs School of Forestry and Wildlife, in a press release. The dogs can detect pythons from a distance and when they spot one they stop in their tracks and crouch. The pythonsâ reaction is strangely poignant. Rather than striking when discovered, they curl up and hide.
âItâs their first line of defense,â said Melissa Miller, biological sciences doctoral student who handled the snakes. âPeople think when you catch a snake itâs going to come back biting at you...but they see us as a predator even though theyâre a large snake.â
So far Jake and Ivy have located 19 pythons, one of which had 19 eggs.
Oanow reports that Jake and Ivy, two Labradors from Alabama's Auburn University, were recently called to the swamps of Florida to find a formidable non-native species: the Burmese Python.
Brought to Florida by the exotic pet trade, and set free in the Everglades, the Southeast Asian snakes are normally about 12 feet long but can reach lengths of up to 19 feet.
Opportunistic eaters, pythons have all but wiped out marsh rabbits, opossums, and raccoons in the southern region of Everglades National Park, according to a nine-year study.
Terry Fischer and Craig Angle of Auburnâs EcoDog program traveled to Florida to pick up samples of the speciesâ scent and then imprinted the dogs with the essence of Burmese python.
âWe found the use of detection dogs to be a valuable addition to the current tools used to manage and control pythons,â said Christina Romagosa, of AUâs School of Forestry and Wildlife, in a press release. The dogs can detect pythons from a distance and when they spot one they stop in their tracks and crouch. The pythonsâ reaction is strangely poignant. Rather than striking when discovered, they curl up and hide.
âItâs their first line of defense,â said Melissa Miller, biological sciences doctoral student who handled the snakes. âPeople think when you catch a snake itâs going to come back biting at you...but they see us as a predator even though theyâre a large snake.â
So far Jake and Ivy have located 19 pythons, one of which had 19 eggs.
03-30-2012, 04:11 AM
03-31-2012, 10:14 AM
What do they do with them after they catch them?
03-31-2012, 04:23 PM
Yeah, screw that. I aint afraid of spiders, and I aint afraid of a Mason Jar, but I dont play around with no snakes.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
03-31-2012, 04:24 PM
Its the people who had set them free who is to blame.
03-31-2012, 04:25 PM
Am I the only one noticing how cute the blonde is that is holding the snake?
03-31-2012, 06:11 PM
^
Im sure shes a hot ass Auburn Vet student.
If i would of had the finiancial means, i would have went to Auburn to be a vet.
There are some sexy ass women there.
Im sure shes a hot ass Auburn Vet student.
If i would of had the finiancial means, i would have went to Auburn to be a vet.
There are some sexy ass women there.
03-31-2012, 09:19 PM
TheRealVille Wrote:Am I the only one noticing how cute the blonde is that is holding the snake?
There is a joke in there, but I'll let it go.....:biggrin:
Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)