You knew this was coming. The following press describes the research documenting the damage invasive pythons are doing to bird populations in Everglades National Park.
Scientists find that non-native snakes are taking a toll on native birds
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Python bivittatus. JCM |
The Everglades National Park in Florida is home to hundreds of
species of native wildlife. It has also become the well-established home
of the non-native Burmese python—known to be a predator of native
species. Now scientists, for the first time, have conducted a detailed
analysis of the avian component of the python's diet and the negative
impact the snakes may have on Florida's native birds, including some
endangered species.
The Burmese python (Python molurus bivittatus), native to
Southeast Asia, was first recorded in the Everglades in 1979—thought to
be escaped or discarded pets. Their numbers have since grown, with an
estimated breeding population in Florida in the tens of thousands. As
researchers investigate the impact of this snake in the Everglades,
scientists from the Smithsonian Institution, South Florida Natural
Resources Center and the University of Florida examined the snake's
predation of the area's birds. They found that birds, including
endangered species, accounted for 25 percent of the python's diet in the
Everglades.
"These invasive Burmese pythons are particularly hazardous to native
bird populations in North America because the birds didn't evolve with
this large reptile as a predator," said Carla Dove, ornithologist at the
Smithsonian's Feather Identification Lab in the National Museum of
Natural History. "Conversely, the python is able to thrive here partly
because it has no natural predator to keep its numbers in check."
The scientists collected 343 Burmese pythons in Everglades National
Park as part of their study between 2003 and 2008. Eighty-five of these
snakes had bird remains in their intestinal tract. From these remains
the team identified 25 species of birds by comparing feathers and bone
fragments with specimens in the Smithsonian's collection. The results
reflected a wide variety of species, from the 5-inch-long house wren to
the 4-foot-long great blue heron. Four of the species identified (snowy
egret, little blue heron, white ibis and limpkin) are listed as "species
of special concern" by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission. The team also identified the remains of a wood stork, which
is a federally endangered species.
"These pythons can also inhabit a wide variety of habitats, so their
impact is not restricted to just the native species within the Everglades," Dove said. "The python's high reproductive rate, longevity,
ability to consume large prey and consumption of bird species are
causes for serious conservation and control measures."
Dove, C. J., R. W. Snow, M. R. Rochford, F. J. Mazzotti. Birds Consumed by the Invasive Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus) in Everglades National Park, Florida, USA. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 2011; 123 (1): 126 DOI: 10.1676/10-092.1
Labels: bird populations, Florida Everglades, invasive pythons