Poster Abstract Details
Status report on efforts to manage and eradicate large constrictors in Florida - (published)
Author(s):
Christina M. Romagosa and Craig Guyer
Affiliation:
Center for Forest Sustainability and Department of Biological Sciences
Presentation Type:
Poster
Topic Area:
Topic Not Specified
Abstract Text:
The live animal trade is an important pathway for the introduction of non-indigenous species. Over the past 30 years, the use of reptiles and amphibians as companion animals has increased, and as a consequence, resulted in an increase of introductions into the wild. Of current interest to government agencies and the public is the establishment of breeding populations of large constrictor snakes in Florida. While key data have been collected on the Burmese python in the Everglades, there are still several unanswered question about its habits, and those of other large constrictor species that have breeding populations and are periodically encountered in both natural and urban Florida habitats. We review the status of these species and discuss ongoing early detection, rapid response efforts and future research on the creation of habitat suitability models.
