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MSN Article - S.Carolina Burmese experiment

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GTPfan

MSN Article - S.Carolina Burmese experiment

Lead

[-]

Posts: 739

(06/29/09 05:59:19)

MVF Post Breeder

Hey, has anyone seen this?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31527357/

I'd love to hear from anyone who has more info on this study. At least someone is taking the initiative to gather real data instead of just speculating.

By the way, is it just me or would anyone else like to slap this Gibbons guy? He's listed as a herp professor, but his comments are more alarmist than scientific.

Ben Evans

www.gtpfan.com | www.iherp.com/benevans

vonnick52

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Posts: 10

(06/29/09 06:24:17)

http://iherp.com/Public/Blog/Detail.aspx?UID=19965 That was just a general discussion of it.

Nate (fyrerocks on iHerp and chondronoob on here) took some time out of his day to talk to one of the guys running the study. He posted a blog as well. http://iherp.com/Public/Blog/Detail.aspx?uid=20084

It seems like the reporter did some serious misquoting and stretching. It's really too bad we don't have any reliable media sources any longer. They are all twisted and corrupt like the politicians they try to skewer.

www.iherp.com/vonnick52

MiguelBlanco

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Posts: 77

(06/29/09 07:02:50)

GTPfan wrote:
Hey, has anyone seen this?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31527357/

I'd love to hear from anyone who has more info on this study. At least someone is taking the initiative to gather real data instead of just speculating.

By the way, is it just me or would anyone else like to slap this Gibbons guy? He's listed as a herp professor, but his comments are more alarmist than scientific.

Can´t really believe any one with specific knowledge in this area, working on sua a project, would actually make such blatantly alarmist and exaggerated comments... " (...)Gibbons said a human is "just another prey item" to a python - especially a small human.(...)" God Damn.... just what we needed at this moment!!!

CHONDROn00b

[-]

Posts: 507

(06/29/09 07:16:16)

MiguelBlanco wrote:

GTPfan wrote:
Hey, has anyone seen this?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31527357/

I'd love to hear from anyone who has more info on this study. At least someone is taking the initiative to gather real data instead of just speculating.

By the way, is it just me or would anyone else like to slap this Gibbons guy? He's listed as a herp professor, but his comments are more alarmist than scientific.

Can´t really believe any one with specific knowledge in this area, working on sua a project, would actually make such blatantly alarmist and exaggerated comments... " (...)Gibbons said a human is "just another prey item" to a python - especially a small human.(...)" God Damn.... just what we needed at this moment!!!

Gibbons was misquoted by the interviewer. After talking to Dr. Dorcas, it seems that most of the article is in fact falsified.

~ Nate Peterson

My corn snake can beat up your GTP!!!!

http://www.iherp.com/fyrefocks

Sony Raju

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Posts: 3924

(06/29/09 07:22:47)

Forum Ultra Chondro!

thats how it goes i guess. always stretching the truth and misquoting. where did all the true/legit studying go? its a shame.

Sony Raju
www.lonestarchondros.com

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, covered in scars, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming, "Yahoo, what a ride!" -Bear Grylls

Ben Team

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Posts: 1697

(06/29/09 09:44:23)

Forum Ultra Chondro!

Whit Gibbons is a respected guy down in these parts. From what I understand he did most of his early work on SE USA turtles. More recently he did some cool stuff testing the 'threshold' of A. piscivorous defensive tactics. He is also part of the group (if not the head honcho) that produced a very good field guide to the snakes of GA & SC.

Misquoted or not, what he said was true.

I have said it a million times, we are screwed as a hobby. Burms don't belong in Joe Q. Snakedorks collection. This for whatever reason though, seems an unpopular opinion.

The only hope we have is to start a taxonomic movement to call the Python genus 'Pythons', and remove all the more basal branches to another taxon.
(Sort of kidding....sort of...)

As for the study, I wish they would have gone further north....Winters in SC/GA aren't that harsh, and I betcha a couple of them do survive. I would love to be wrong though.

and boom goes the dynamite

Kim Burge

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Posts: 483

(06/29/09 09:57:36)

MVFonator

Whit Gibbons is very well respected as is Mike Dorcas. My understanding is that this is a thermoregulation study only and they are not taking into account things like finding prey, roads, etc. The snakes will be fed throughout the year so I expect many of them will survive since this isn't really a survival in the wild study.

Kim Burge
Southern Chondros

MegF42

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Posts: 2446

(06/29/09 10:25:05)

Forum super duper Ultra Chondro!

I know Whit Gibbons personally and I found it hard to believe that he would say stuff like that. We're planning on going snake hunting in July and I might ask him about the article and stuff. He's in Washington right now, so I haven't bothered him lately except to let him know I found a cute hoggy on the road the other day. I suspect that the Burmese will have a hard time surviving the temperatures here. The winters can be brutal (freezing with snow on occasion) and right now the daytime temps are 100 for most of the day. It will be interesting to see if they do well or not. While I think they might survive the summer, I can't see them surviving weeks of temps in the teens during the winter.

2.2~Cornsnakes
3.4.2~Green Tree Pythons
4.2.1~Amazon tree boas
1.0~California Kingsnake
1.1~Snail Eaters
1.0~Eyelash Viper
1.1~False Water Cobras
Assorted: Horses, dogs, and cats
www.Franclycac.com

CHONDROn00b

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Posts: 510

(06/29/09 10:43:04)

From what i gathered from my conversation with M. Dorcas, this is an experiment to see if they will survive the temps. According to him, there are areas in asia that do reach freezing during parts of the year and there are populations of burms that survive these temps. The goal is not to see if they can migrate, as im sure they probably could, but to see if they will survive in the event of said migration.

Wheres theres a will, theres a way.

~ Nate Peterson

My corn snake can beat up your GTP!!!!

http://www.iherp.com/fyrefocks

vonnick52

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Posts: 11

(06/29/09 10:52:14)

As I mentioned in the iHerp blog discussion...I really wish they'd use a larger sample size and other locations. A study on 7 animals in the northern part of the "predicted range" is not statistically sound and is going to be picked apart, regardless of the outcome. Not to mention, Georgia resident's don't care if big snakes can live in South Carolina...they are concerned what can happen in their backyard.

We are screwed as a hobby unless/until someone starts making "campaign contributions" so some of those guys in D.C. can take an extra trip to exotic locations "so they can observe these exotic animals in their native lands."

www.iherp.com/vonnick52

Ben Team

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Posts: 1698

(06/29/09 11:02:28)

Forum Ultra Chondro!

"Brutal Winters", Meg? Really?
Perhaps my memories are fuzzy...I thought your winters were like our GA winters.

and boom goes the dynamite

Kim Burge

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Posts: 485

(06/30/09 05:30:03)

MVFonator

I guess brutal is a matter of opinion but being from SC/NC, I think our winters are COLD with enough long term hard freezes to be fatal to this species over time.

FYI - I heard directly from Whit this morning and he said that the article, while somewhat colorfully written, were all his statements and were true. There was no falsification in the article.

Kim Burge
Southern Chondros

AdamM

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Posts: 21

(06/30/09 07:25:41)

Living in NC myself, we do get ice storms that freeze and snap telephone lines and nock down trees. And this is in the Greensboro/Winston Salem area.

GTPfan

[-]

Posts: 741

(06/30/09 17:58:24)

MVF Post Breeder

Thanks for all the responses guys. I'm glad that some of you have spoken to the folks involved and gotten the real info here.

I hope this experiment gives better data on what these animals can really survive in with regards to our temperate climate.

While it appears Whit may be well respected among the herp and scientific community, I found his comments to be very unprofessional. It's one thing to joke among friends who understand the sarcasm, but that kind of talk doesn't bode well when being interviewed by media.

As a side note, I was notified about this article from my new FedEx rep while he was getting me certified to ship reptiles. He thought from reading the article (and when I say read I mean skim) that there was "some experiment going on to breed pythons that could survive in this climate, and that all the offspring would all be males." He couldn't figure out why anyone would do that.

Ben Evans

www.gtpfan.com | www.iherp.com/benevans

nfriedman.chondroforum

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Posts: 35

(06/30/09 19:07:29)

Kim Burge wrote:
I guess brutal is a matter of opinion but being from SC/NC, I think our winters are COLD with enough long term hard freezes to be fatal to this species over time.

FYI - I heard directly from Whit this morning and he said that the article, while somewhat colorfully written, were all his statements and were true. There was no falsification in the article.

Kim, are you telling us he is not troubled by the sensational tone of the article?
Is he not concerned that it stokes the fear and hatred that people, especially in the southeast, already have for snakes?
Norm

laurenL17.allaboutgreatdanes

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Posts: 53

(06/30/09 19:42:42)

How cold does it get there?

Growing up in Minnesota... having school canceled because it is too cold for the school busses to start.. now thats brutal.

I think the sample size is too small as well and it sounds like, because there are hibernation caves and whatnot, that they're going to have a few live snakes at the end..

http://www.iherp.com/tmth

GTPfan

[-]

Posts: 742

(06/30/09 20:21:32)

MVF Post Breeder

Lauren,

While I cannot comment on SC weather, in VA we will usually get a cold snap in the winter where the night lows are in the teens and the daytime highs around 30 for about a week. Otherwise our winters are relatively mild (daytime 40s-50s, nighttime 30-ish) with only some winters having any real snow accumulation. My son just turned 5 and this was the first winter we've had enough snow for him to go sleigh riding.

I agree the sample is small, and if the winter is mild enough there's a good chance some or all will survive. While the study seems limited in several ways, at least it will generate hard data instead of continued speculation.

Ben Evans

www.gtpfan.com | www.iherp.com/benevans

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