A 4 foot Boa was badly burned when it knocked over a heat light catching a cardboard box on fire just after 9AM this morning. Some other furnishings in the area were burned as well. Fire Captain Ted Farr said the family did the right thing by listening to their smoke detectors, evacuating the house and dialing 911. There is no word on the condition or future of the snake, only that it was badly burned.
Magic Pythons, till death do they part
Two Pythons in Cambodia are newlyweds today after a 2 hour ceremony to wed them by villagers. According to their beliefs, marrying the Pythons will bring good luck to their village
“We married these pythons to ask for health and prosperity in our village,” said 41-year-old Neth Vy, owner of female python named Chamrouen.
“We were told (by fortunetellers) that the two pythons are husband and wife and they need to live together, and if we don’t marry them we will meet bad luck,” said Neth Vy, who found the then-tiny python while fishing 16 years ago.
He has said that they have had good luck since making the Python part of their family, the male Python was recently caught by a woman who says she sees him as her son.
Largest Alligator in the country
The Newport Aquarium has what is believed to be the largest Alligator in the country, on loan from a private collection in Florida is the 14 foot long 800lb aptly named Mighty Mike. The large gater will be on display at the Aquarium until late spring at which time he will be transported to an outdoor exhibit at the Michigan Zoo.
Mighty Mike has become somewhat of a story in the conservation world as he was spotted in the wild living near a boat dock in a lake in Florida. Large Alligators are determined by the state of Florida to be a threat to people and the Florida FWC ordered him destroyed as is law in that state. The trapper however saw something bigger at work.
The trapper contacted local expert Bruce Shwedick and asked him to give the monster a home, Bruce did so and has maintained the Alligator ever since, naming it after the trappers son Mike.
Stop killing the crocs, plead wildlife activists
KUCHING: Villagers have vowed to continue their hunt for a crocodile that killed and devoured a man here, even if they have to kill “each and every last one” in the Batang Samarahan River.
Their pledge, however, has earned them the wrath of environmentalists and wildlife groups.
Malaysian Nature Society chairman Asso Prof Maketab Mohamed said although human life was sacred, it did not mean that it was all right to kill crocodiles “as if their lives were worthless”.
The villagers have so far caught and disembowelled three crocodiles since Sidi Samad, 66, was seen eaten alive on Dec 18.
Full Story
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/1/3/nation/7725261&sec=nation
Snakes pose added danger to rescue effort in Queensland’s flooded areas
Authorities fear residents returning to previously flooded houses will face a plague of deadly reptiles.
The snakebite danger was just one of the immediate and challenging health issues facing Queensland Health, which is coping with everything from contaminated water and sewage overflows to having to evacuate more than a dozen pregnant women and establish emergency clinics for stranded residents.
State medical director for retrieval services Mark Elcock, who is co-ordinating helicopters and planes to relay patients from flood zones to major hospitals,said the situation posed a significant logistical challenge.
Full Story
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/snakes-pose-added-danger-to-rescue-effort-in-flooded-areas/story-e6frg6nf-1225980648743
Police: Dead alligator, lizards, snakes found in Garner home of man charged with dealing drugs
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Police say they found several dead animals, including an alligator, two snakes and two lizards, at the home of a Garner man charged with selling drugs.
Court records obtained by The News & Observer of Raleigh accuse 31-year-old Kelvin Leroy Dunston of killing the animals by not feeding them.
Police say they found the dead alligator and lizards inside separate aquariums and two dead pit bulls were found chained to a tree. One dead snake was in a box, and another in a drawer.
The full story
http://www.myfox8.com/news/sns-ap-nc–exoticanimals,0,3031987.story
Reptile reigns terror
A Crocodile is reported to be terrorising residents of Mufurila.
The reptile has so far killed five dogs and one person has survived the attack so far.
District Police Commanding Officer Stephen Simasiku has confirmed the development in Mufulira.
Mr. Simasiku says the crocodile has been on the rampage for two weeks now.
The full story
http://www.znbc.co.zm/media/news/viewnews.cgi?category=19&id=1293877430