Are pythons overrunning the Everglades?

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Originally Posted by dr del

:rolleyes:

You need to retune those senses a bit. :P

Trolls are pretty rare on this site as we do look for them ( and other suspicious accounts and behaviours ) I promise. ;)


dr del

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Hey Del,

Had you been the first one to see the post, you would have been "looking". For a "reptile owner" to come to reptile forum and state a bunch of uneducated remarks about a very fresh and sensitive subject in the reptile community, it sure raised my brow. Still does to be honest.

I adore my snakes. I know everyone here does as well but I know more than a few people here who own pythons because they're not hard to obtain in the area. To me they seem the sort who would just release them if they didn't have the means to care for them properly.

My op was purely experience related. I guided horseback trail rides out of Davie, Florida to an airboat ramp. My job was to spot and point out various wildlife to our guests on the way. In the area there are a lot of species that you really wouldn't expect... due to nuclear power plants cooling canals (though I could be wrong about this, too?) we even have a thriving population of crocs down here. I don't, nor did I intend to state, that the ban or any related matter was appropriate or that the statistics were accurate. I did say I thought it was incredibly out of proportion. I was out there every day, though, and pre 2010 I did see pythons.

I apologize for my apparent lack of clarity, but I didn't quote, cite or reference any sources. It was only a personal excerpt. After watching, reading and researching the facts are clear, I don't question that. I was just trying to give some unique insight as a Florida resident.

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As a south Florida resident I must say that there are a large number of pythons cohabiting the everglades these days...

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In any case, we can only blame owner negligence. Fair? Not at all, but we're talking about an area where a lot of dog breeds have been banned because of human incapacity too.

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I adore my snakes. I know everyone here does as well but I know more than a few people here who own pythons because they're not hard to obtain in the area. To me they seem the sort who would just release them if they didn't have the means to care for them properly.

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I was definitely under the wrong impression if being released wasn't such a contributing factor in their population rise, though. I suppose I ought to check some more statistics on my own state before relying on just my own experience... Half of what you see, none of what you hear, right?

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So you've seen quite a number of people releasing pythons or are these just more people who "seem the sort who would just release them if they didn't have the means to care for them properly"? Just trying to figure out the basis of your personal experience and corresponding deductions. I am glad you're starting to read actual facts and realizing not all presumptions are true(especially when based on the personal experiences of a single, casual observer), all the misinformation spreading like wildfire can be extremely frustrating to the advocates of reptile keeping.

I've never seen anyone release a snake, but I have seen them in the glades. I shouldn't have said 'these days'. My experience is outdated by over a year and I didn't expect such a rapid change - as I was living in north central FL when we had the cold snap that I now see seemed to obliterate the population.

Again, though I've never seen a release I used to volunteer with a private equine rescue in south FL, and there was a surprising number of negligent people/abandoned properties that also had pythons. I have a few acquaintances here who own pythons because there are a lot of inexpensive sources. I've helped rehome two, and the alternative was release. (I don't associate with said persons, and haven't since). Because of my experience and from what I'd seen and heard, I thought that had come to be a norm in this area. I didn't ever research it, and tried to do what I could on a personal level. (by the way, thanks to those who took the opportunity to shed some light on the situation here!) The last bit you quoted emphasizes that thanks.

Basically, I'm a naive twenty year old veterinary -go- ag student who has lived in Florida for fifteen years. I felt well versed because many of the people I've encountered down here know little to nothing about how our state functions as an ecosystem, so I tried to convey that. From several years worth of experience, my knowledge was that; A - I saw pythons in the Glades, B - People here are often irresponsible with animals.

With a minuscule amount of influence from a news source several years ago (A picture of a python with an alligator exploding out of it) it made sense that they were in the area because people released them.

Key word naive...

Not trying to be a malicious troll, really. :)

Ohlacey, its just hard for some of us to actually believe your legit. You being very new here, coming to this thread and commenting how you have, with the screen name " Ohlacey", just seems a bit coincidental.

Well she did make an intro thread. Maybe if we just give her a chance. I doubt she would have continued the conversation as politely as she did if she had ulterior motives..

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Originally Posted by heathers*bps

Ohlacey, its just hard for some of us to actually believe your legit. You being very new here, coming to this thread and commenting how you have, with the screen name " Ohlacey", just seems a bit coincidental.

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What does her username have to do with it? The Lacey Act? That's like saying someone named Amber commenting on a police site has something to do with Amber Alert. :/

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Originally Posted by SpartaDog

What does her username have to do with it? The Lacey Act? That's like saying someone named Amber commenting on a police site has something to do with Amber Alert. :/

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Ok, I guess its just me :confuzd:

What would a python ban supporter have to achieve by lurking a reptile forum anyway? That makes no sense.. At the very most it would be beneficial to us because it would educate them and fill in the gaps of misinformation that is running rampant out there. We do have all the facts, info, and supporting links proving all that has happened and been skewed over the last 5 years..

In fact, I think it would be very beneficial if we started going through all that old info and collecting it for a sticky. All the info from the hurricane and the destroyed facilities, to the 2 snakes that were released by HSUS officials (or was it PETA? I don't remember the details of that one) in south Carolina trying to further their agenda but someone came forward and turned them in.. To all the false "science" etc etc..

Everything that has been dug up over the last 5 years proving that's it's all been in the name of politics, money, and the HSUS "no pets at all" agenda.

Then we'd have a thread sticky dedicated to nothing but educating people on these things, and THIS amazing article right here is an excellent place to start.....

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=163515

My name is Gillian Lacey. I usually don't shoot it around the web, but circumstances provided...

In any case, thanks again for the information. I really do appreciate it. All of the articles, and the video, were really informative. I definitely needed a bit of reforming for some ill conceived notions.