Two large female Burmese pythons got a new home Friday at the Henry Doorly Zoo.
But before they got to check out their new digs, they got a checking over. Dennis Pate, director and CEO of the zoo; Jessi Krebs, curator of reptiles and amphibians; and other zookeepers gave visitors a thrill by weighing and measuring the snakes in a grassy area near the nursery building.
The smaller snake, which doesn’t have a name yet, is 12 feet, 9 inches long and weighs 112 pounds.
The second snake, Monty (as in Monty Python, even though a female), is 15 feet, 9 inches and 192 pounds.
(In contrast, a male ball python found this week in a La Vista hotel was only about 3 feet long.)
After the stats were collected, the zookeepers carried the snakes to their new exhibit at the Hubbard Orangutan Valley. The unnamed snake was carried to the habitat in a tub, but it took at least four people to carry Monty in their arms.
The pythons’ space has special features, including a heated log and infra-red heating elements, to mimic their natural habitat in south and southeast Asia. A mural adds to the decor. It was painted by David Rock of Santa Fe, N.M., who also has created murals for the soon-to-open Madagascar exhibit.
The snakes have not been on display at the zoo for several years; the smaller one for a time was in the Lied Jungle but outgrew its space there.
Pate pointed out that the zoo’s two pythons provide a lesson about exotic pets. Monty, who came to the zoo in 1998, and her roommate, who arrived in 1994, started out as pets who outgrew their welcome in their owners’ homes. Soon they were passed on to schools, but they eventually ended up at the zoo.
The lesson, Pate said, is to be responsible when selecting a pet, especially an exotic one, and “don’t just let them go” when they grow too large. The release of pythons into the wild by pet owners already is creating havoc with ecosystems in Florida.
Zoo visitors may be surprised that the pythons don’t really move around a lot. But that’s true in the wild, too although they can swim and climb trees (before they get too big) unless they’re hungry. The zoo’s snakes eat only once a month. Their diet? Rabbits.
Habitat depletion, the pet trade demand, and hunting for their skins and meat have landed these snakes on the threatened-in-the-wild species list, according to the National Geographic Web site.