From the Herald-Tribune:

There could be more than 2,000 Burmese pythons ranging largely across south Sarasota County within three years unless steps are taken to control the growth of the huge snakes, says a New College of Florida professor.

Suggestions, though, that this latest scourge of Mother Nature could harm tourism may be a stretch. After all, this is a state known for alligator and shark attacks — not to mention hurricanes, mosquitoes and love bugs — and the tourists still come.

The predicted explosion in the local python population is being made by Meg Lowman, director of environmental initiatives at New College. Lowman ranked pythons as a bigger issue, at least in the near term, than climate change in a report to the county. She and New College are in the final year of a five-year, $250,000 contract to advise the county on science issues.

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From the Herald-Tribune:

There are lizards on Siesta Key — and we’re not talking about bling-laden 50-somethings lounging around the island’s nightspots.

What scientists refer to as a reproducing colony of black spiny-tailed iguanas has established itself along Midnight Pass Road south of Siesta Key Beach. Previously, these colonies had only been found in Venice, Englewood and Manasota Key.

The invasion of reptiles — not just iguanas, but also the more muscular and often nastier monitor lizards and even pythons — is extending northward based on reported sightings and may be on the verge of a major population explosion, said Meg Lowman, director of environmental initiatives at New College of Florida.

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How to Identify Invasive Reptiles in SW Florida Power Point slideshow compiled by Ecology students at New College of Florida.

Invasive reptiles covered in this guide:

• Black Spiny-Tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura similis)
• Brown Basilisk (Basiliscus vittatis)
• Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus)
• Nile Monitor (Varanus niloticus or Varanus niloticus ornatus)
• Savannah Monitor (Varanus exanthematicus)

Click to view the PDF of the report: “Sarasota County and New College of Florida Science Partnership – Second Quarter Fall 2008“

From UPI.com:

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., Oct. 23 (UPI) — A Virginia Beach woman appears to have been killed by a pet reticulated python while she was trying to give the 13-foot snake medication.

Amanda Ruth Black’s husband found her body Tuesday night when he came home, The Virginian-Pilot reported. She was lying in front of the snake’s empty cage.

Police said the 25-year-old woman died from asphyxiation. They found the python in the bedroom and described it as agitated.

The snake was in the custody of Virginia Beach Animal Control.

The reticulated python, native to Southeast Asia, can grow to be more than 30 feet long and competes with the heavier anaconda of South America for the title of longest snake. Pythons are not venomous and have become popular pets, but experts warn they can be dangerous if they are startled or if not fed correctly.

Case Study of the Need for Cutting-Edge Field Ecology in Sarasota County

The Invasive Herps workshop on September 22, 2008 was an opportunity to bring best practices, share data and management practices, and develop “one voice” for Florida challenges with invasive reptiles. Scientists, county managers, state workers, students and trappers gathered to present information and discuss strategies. This workshop was organized by Dr. Meg Lowman from New College who hosted participants, organized meals, created program, and collected a list of state practitioners for this topic.

This one-day workshop is a model of what Base Camp Sarasota could offer – easily, effectively and with minimal effort. Base Camp Sarasota could offer accommodation for science professionals, a go-to place, and a think-tank setting. It could begin to collect some of the much-needed data sets that were sorely missing from this first-ever invasive reptile workshop. BCS could become a center for the creation of best-ecological-management practices in Florida, and assemble scientists, students and managers in a setting that could gain name recognition for environmental solutions. Nowhere in southwest Florida’s watershed ecosystems does such a field station exist. In the aegis of “build it, and they will come…….” Any scientist from the northern temperate regions of America will tell you that field biologists would flock to a subtropical habitat for year-round research, instead of hanging out in the libraries during the January and February snowstorms of Harvard, Vermont, Cornell, Chicago, Michigan and other major centers of ecological research.

Thank you to the TREE Foundation and New College for hosting the Invasive Species Workshop, and for setting the stage for future efforts through Base Camp Sarasota!

You can view a contact list of all participants by opening this document:
Invasive Herp Workshop Participants
(Document is password protected to avoid SPAM bots. Use password: herps)

Below is a video playlist of select speakers, the full agenda list, and a photo gallery from the event.

(Video playlist tips: Use the scroll bar to access all videos thumbnails, click to play, click the button to view in full screen.)

AGENDA (Names in bold are the speakers)

9:30 AM – Coffee, posters and herp displays

10:00 AM – Opening Introduction – The invasion ecology of large reptiles in South Florida – Defining a new battleground
Meg Lowman, New College

10:15 AM – Sarasota County – Management challenges of invasive herps
Kenya Leonard, Sarasota County Environmental Services

10:30 AM – Cooperative research and education for control of Burmese pythons in Greater Everglades ecosystems
Michael R. Rochford, Michael S. Cherkiss, Matthew L. Brien, Skip Snow, Kenneth Rice, Michael E. Dorcas, Alexander Wolf, Brian Greeves, Laurie Wilkins, Gordon Rodda, Robert Reed, Kristen Hart (US Geological Survey), and Frank Mazzotti

11:00 AM – Nonindigeneous amphibians and reptiles in Florida: defining the invasion process and identifying continuous pathways.
Kenneth L. Krysko (University of Florida Museum of Natural History), Joseph Burgess, Kevin M. Enge, Louis A. Somma, Michael R. Rochford, Stuart V. Nielson, and Jennifer L. Stabile

11:30 AM – Preliminary data on the Argentine black and white tegu (Tupinambis merianea) in central Florida
Bernard Kaiser, Larry Connor, Ross Dickerson, Kevin Enge (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission), Scott Hardin, Kenneth Krysko, and Catherine Smith

12:00 PM – Are invasive fishes causing the collapse of Florida’s native semi-aquatic herpetofauna?
Steve Godley, Biological Research Associates

12:30 PM – Lunch provided by TREE Foundation

1:30 PM – Reptile Trapping Techniques – Challenges and Frustrations
George Cera, SW Florida trapper

1:45 PM – How far can they go? Exotic in NE Florida
Joseph Burgess, Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve

2:00 PM – Exploring potential management strategies for invasive Cuban treefrogs and coquis
Steve Johnson and Monica McGarrity, University of Florida

2:30 PM – What, why, and what does it all mean?
Kevin Enge, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

3:00 PM – Break

3:15 PM – Is there a role for invasive journalists in the exotic species problem? Public education as a solution
Leslie Anthony, author of Snakebit: Confessions of a Herpetologist

3:30 PM – Paradise lost: the status of introduced amphibian and reptile management in Florida
Todd Campbell, University of Tampa

4:00 PM – Discussion – Where to go from here? Group discussion led by Meg, Kenya, Kristen, Kenney and Todd

Field Guide to the Flora and Fauna of the Barrier Islands of Southwest Florida

Design Challenge Sarasota County
Rethinking Sustainable Construction 2006
September 18-22, 2006

Challenge your creative muse in Sarasota. Assemble a team in advance or join others at RSC06 to form a discovery team that will provide key input into the world’s first sustainable biological field station, Base Camp Sarasota!

This project will provide a “base camp” for research and education that will guide future land use policy and environmental decisions based on both economics and biology. Base Camp Sarasota is part of a larger initiative known as the Florida Institute for Integrative Land Use being jointly developed by Sarasota County Government, New College of Florida, the University of Florida and the Florida House Institute.

After conducting preliminary scientific and architectural explorations into the project’s feasibility over the past year, Sarasota County has dedicated five acres of pristine natural environment within a 54,000-acre site at its Carlton Reserve. This area, called the Horse Pond site, is representative of the many wetland features of the Carlton expanse. The site has an excellent diversity of habitat and an aura of natural beauty that will make it ideal for small conferences and for activities such as biomimicry workshops.

Research conducted at the field station will result in the first comprehensive biological inventory of the region and provide an experimental setting for assessing the ecological impacts of land use practices.

For one- or two-week periods year round, groups of up to 20 students will live onsite with their instructors. Faculty may choose to bring family to accompany them. Research, meeting and dining facilities, as well as sleeping accommodations, will be included in the overall campus plan. The goal will be to assimilate the scientists into the site; integrate them into the ecosystems.

The biological field station created on this environmentally sensitive tract will provide an excellent setting for the scientific community to study southwest Florida’s unique subtropical ecosystems. What the scientists experience and document here can be replicated worldwide by others in similar climates.

Design Challenge Sarasota County will incorporate innovative environmental design for a state-of-the-art facility in harmony with nature. This campus could become an international model using best practices of sustainable architecture.

Bring your best product, technology and design knowledge to bear for this challenge. Sarasota County recently became the nation’s first to accept the AIA’s 2030 Challenge, so carbon neutrality will be an essential element. Explore cutting-edge solutions with colleagues from around the world. Leave something of lasting significance behind.

At approximately 4,000 square feet, the field station will be modular and include a laboratory accommodating 8-10 researchers, a library/classroom/lecture space, space for three offices, a two-bedroom residential unit for scientists conducting long-term research; a bunkhouse with five rooms accommodating four persons in each, plus two bathrooms; a covered porch; a dining/meeting area that can serve 60; and a full kitchen. Adequate adjacent parking of crushed shell and grass will connect to the main Carlton Reserve parking area.

There are some site challenges: Ecosystems here include wetlands with seasonal ponds, oak-palm hammock, open pine flatwoods with a burning regime and public access areas to study human impact. The terrain is wet, with up to four feet of standing water, during part of the year. Sarasota County is a prime hurricane target.

The Challenge will be launched from 1-5 p.m. Monday, Aug. 18, at the Ritz-Carlton. Interested in a site field trip on your own in advance?

Outcomes will be evaluated on all systems:

• Foundation
• Built
• Energy
• Water
• Wastewater

Considerations: Go light on the land. Optimize sustainable products and practices.

1. Snuggle into the landscape
2. Maximize natural light
3. Minimize habitat disturbance
4. Incorporate natural materials and aesthetics so that users feel they are out in nature even when they are inside
5. Maximize ecosystem awareness with views, aspects and pulling the outdoors inside
6. Incorporate local or sustainable materials with scientific interpretation into all design elements
7. Provide museum quality messages that give the user some take-home messages
8. Involve users in the mission of the building, with such components as an aerial map to pinpoint bird nests, a daily weather chart, a plant and bird list— all in a public place so people can participate in ecosystem monitoring
9. Create modular plan scalable for future growth and friendly to these intended residents: student scientists/faculty/family friendly. Requires dormitory for 20 students; sleeping accommodations for faculty and families; cooking and dining facility; research and meeting facilities
10. Consider zero- or near-zero energy, biomimetic/biomimic design

Epiphytes of Myakka guide

Invasive Plant Species Field Guide

Invasive exotic plants are defined as those who can sustain themselves outside their natural range, without human help, and are disrupting native plant communities. According to the University of South Florida, as many as one-third of the wild plants in Florida are exotic. These plants do not have a natural check on their growth so they can spread rapidly and are a major source of habitat loss. They may also affect native ecosystems by altering fire frequency, and aquatic invasives often disrupt water flow, impeding navigation and flood control. Management of exotics is costing taxpayers millions of dollars each year. You can help save money and the environment by becoming more aware of this problem. Knowing which plants are invasive will help you avoid planting them in your yard and to remove them when found. Although the plant may not be threat where you live, seeds have been known to travel vast distances and they could eventually travel to a place where it can become a serious problem. You should especially be on the lookout for Category 1 and 2 invasives as is determined by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council.

• Category 1 invasives are very invasive and are known to displace native plant species and alter natural plant communities.
• Category 2 invasives are plants that are increasing in number, but have not yet damaged natural ecosystems to the extent of Category 1 species.

To learn more visit the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council or Myakka River State Park’s websites.

Produced by: Topher Lawton, Faith Lobell, and Molly Burges in Professor Meg Lowman’s Conservation Biology class
Special thanks to Myakka River State Park, Sarasota County, and TREE Foundation