Python Culling in Florida

[Finntroll86]

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/20052133/detail.html

Hello all, I just came across this article, and IMHO i think it is asinine, politicians always find some way to ruin this country if it makes them look good for a select demographic. It was a captive pet not a wild python that killed the girl, but of course it would be too much for the parents to take that responsibility. My question is where is the state going to get the money to pay for a mass extermination? Fire some more police officers? or firemen? maybe some teachers? Or they could print some more money and create grounds for a much larger inflation in a few years.

 

[David_F]

Two completely different issues. I don't know why they're trying to connect the death of the girl and the wild burms. I mean I know why but.....

It might be a good idea to have an open season on the wild ones. I know we can't get rid of them completely and don't know what kind of danger they really pose to people but they're definitely detrimental to the Everglades ecosystem. Then again, so are people. How sweet would it be to hunt the.... Oh, nevermind. Different subject. Anyway, if they sold licenses to hunt the snakes I'd head that way now.

As far as the captive snake killing a kid goes....no charges have been filed? That dude needs to be thrown in jail for quite a while for child endangerment and a lot of other things. Keeping an animal like that in an unsecure enclosure around kids is irresponsible and I consider him directly responsible for her death. On the other hand, it was the "stupid" snakes fault the girl died. It's not like dude put the snake in her crib intentionally. That snake had probably been waiting for months for just the right moment to escape and eat the whole family. Too bad it didn't succeed, actually.

On a related note....Within one week there were two exotic snakes found in my town. The first was a 5' boa; the second a 9' burm. The amount of misinformation and fear-mongering being tossed about was great entertaiment. I know this kind of thing is old news in some places but it's not too common here. The toothless, fifth-generation-inbred gomers here got all kinds of worked up over that stuff.

 

[Finntroll86]

I agree totally, it just shows how most people (and i don't want to say ignorant, because they never learn) cant or wont take responsibility for their own mistakes, live and learn, yes i would be very upset if my python killed anything of mine (kid, dog, cat, etc.) but seriously jumping on a band wagon and declaring a witch hunt is not the way to go.

Ecological reasons aside its the same thing we see over and over when a person is killed by a bear, mt lion, or a shark. They go off and kill it no questions asked even if the hoople head was setting themselves up to be killed, But a human can kill 1+ people during a burglary or for w/e reason and sit on death row for 20+ years!

Just like my favorite saying from Rorschach of the Watchmen "Humans go to jail, dogs get put down"

 

[pouchedrat]

Unwanted disposed of pets, and people elsewhere in the states who are looking to own them.

Yeah, I'm still extremely pissed off about the pouched rats that are being exterminated in Florida. I know TONS of people looking to own them again, both former owners as well as new (myself included, I miss my boy more than anything in the world, he was by far the greatest creature I've ever known). Sure they would need to have that tameness re-bred into them, but so many elsewhere are desperate to have them again, especially now that they're LEGAL to own again (but not in Florida of course...) and NO one can find breeders who actually kept them for those 5 long years they were banned. Oh yeah, and we cannot import them anymore, even captive bred ones from the UK, so we're SOL. I even know people willing to work with the wild ones to breed them and create docile pets again. Rumor has it that it only takes 5 generations to domesticate them, and my boy was a 4th generation captive bred and was AMAZINGLY affectionate and social, and wouldn't hurt a fly.

I also get pissed off about the whole exotic thing. It's stories like this that make people freak out and outright ban an entire species of animal. Of course, if it were a dog that killed the toddler or mauled her face off, they would not outright ban dogs (unless it was a pit bull). People are harmed every day by dogs but since it's not newsworthy and since they're "man's best friend", it doesn't get noted. It gets reported and there's some laws the owners must follow, but other than that, newspapers aren't about to jump on it and declare a death to all dogs.

Please excuse this post. I've been up almost 48 hours and work midnight shifts so if it doesn't make sense, that is why. I just really hate people pouncing in on things like that... it's the fault of the parent/boyfriend, not the ones minding their own business.

 

[dtknow]

Just have someone(pro trapper) go down and get them.


On the pythons. I agree on an open season. I have no idea how this connects to the childs death. I bet tons of people would enjoy slogging around in their to capture/shoot a giant python. I mean that sounds a lot cooler than deer hunting...haha

 

[zonbonzovi]

All those invasives + overworked food banks = a need for recipes

Louisiana contracted chefs to develop recipes after they discovered the extent of the nutria problem. It didn't really work, nut maybe it's because people balk at eating something that looks like a beaver/rat hybrid. Oh snap, looks like I spoke too soon:

http://wildlifetrapper.com/2009/08/python-recipes/

 

[Jmugleston]

I spent a week out collecting insects near the everglades and you wouldn't believe the stories I was hearing. Some of the locals were going off on how they never see gators under 3 feet anymore (attributed to pythons), how the bird numbers were down, etc. I saw dozens of gators that size including some even smaller. I saw nesting gators, and more herons and egrets than I cared to photograph. But, not a single python. One guy was telling us how he has found a 14 footer, a 12 footer, and an 8 footer while hunting in the swamps.......yet he had no proof. I'm okay with going after invasive species. I typically collect and dispatch invasives (except humans because that is homicide and generally frowned upon) when I encounter them in the field. It sucks since the animals had little to do with their introduction, but they are taxing a system already hindered by us. So, python hunts are okay in my view, but the propaganda or the sensationalism behind their presence is ridiculous. Feral cats are a nationwide problem but nobody wants to do a kitten hunt. This post is somewhat scattered. I'll end now.

 

[Terribilis87]

Being that im a biology major interested mostly in environmental work, Ive done a lot of reading about this subject, and introduction of exotic species into the wild are really affecting the population, this is how a number of species in other countries have become endangered/extinct. I dont think it would be at all a wasted of gov't funds allotted to the fwc or park rangers to remove these pythons to save native species. Just my 2 cents

 

[Bigboy]

The only good invasive is a dead invasive. I'll be trapping this year and I can't wait to find my first dead feral cats on my trapline. Invasives are a blight on the landscape. I'm all for lethal removal of invasive burms in Florida. I don't even agree with the planting of non-native ornamentals in peoples yards. I'm a wildlife biologist by trade as well so if you would like to have a proper discussion on invasive management I'll be happy to have a dialogue on the subject in pm's.

 

[blazetown]

I think they should just offer cash for python heads or something. I know one of the islands around the base of south america has become infested with beavers and they were offering cash for tails lol.

 

[BrianWI]

I think they should just offer cash for python heads or something. I know one of the islands around the base of south america has become infested with beavers and they were offering cash for tails lol.

Won't eat nutria in LA? Cajuns will eat anything in a good gumbo! Heck, python would probably be welcome by that area, eating snakes is commonplace. Lotta meat on a python!

However, my guess is they are not really common yet, nor wouls a specialized hunt be effective. Give every warden a .22, if they see one, shoot it.

 

[barabootom]

Give a few licenses to hunt them. I don't think it's wise to issue too many licenses because other animals will get killed and ecosystems will get trampled. If just a few licenses are granted I'm sure someone could make a decent income killing them for boots and belts.