serpens Volume 1 I Number 1 THIS ISSUE From the Editor 1 From the BPSG Chair 2 Boas and pythons in 2 the news From the Orianne 3 Society Recent scientific 5 publications Book review 9 Upcoming Events 10 BPSG Committee 11 © Daniel Natusch + FROM THE EDITOR Green python Welcome to the first newsletter of the IUCN/SSC Boa & Python Specialist Group (BPSG) – Morelia viridis serpens. The BPSG started in August 2011, and since then it has concentrated on developing the group An arboreal species of by appointing core members and working on its corporate image. The BPSG is currently python distributed focusing on the significant trade in Southeast Asian pythons, but hopes to encourage and act as throughout the Island of New Guinea and a small a focal point for all researchers working on the natural history and conservation of boa and area in Northern Australia. python species worldwide. The BPSG welcomes you and your colleagues to send us any project Juveniles are born either news, reports, recent publications, and photos. Sharing your valued efforts with the BPSG ‘brick’ red or ‘banana’ allows us to document and promote research and conservation work on our focal species. yellow and later change to ‘lime’ green (above). The Finally, thank you to all those members who contributed to the first serpens! green python is the symbol for the BPSG. Jessica Lyons, BPSG serpens Editor 123 serpens Vol. 1 I No. 1 Serpens is a bi-yearly newsletter produced Serpens is distributed to the BPSG members BPSG or wish to make a donation to the and distributed by the IUCN/SSC Boa & and to other interested individuals and group’s conservation initiatives, please Pythons Specialist Group (BPSG). The organizations twice a year in January and contact Guillermo Adrián Puccio at newsletter provides information on the July. The newsletter is free, and will be [email protected] conservation, status, and news concerning available to download online at the BPSG boas and pythons. Current events, such as website. Visit the BPSG on Facebook to keep scientific research, workshops, and fieldtrips up to date with the group. If you would like are also detailed in the newsletter. to assist with fundraising efforts for the The establishment of the IUCN/SSC FROM THE Boa & Python Specialist Group satisfies a long-standing personal desire, but BPSG CHAIR more importantly fulfills an overdue necessity considering the threats these species face. Boas and pythons are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of the world, however, clear-cutting of forests, substitution of natural habitats by demand for their skins for the fashion and to influence the decision-making crops and infrastructure, introduced industry. For many of these species, process regarding the conservation of predators and competitors, scientists and institutions have to cope these fascinating creatures. Needless to international trade, and climate change, with the attention of public opinion and say, Serpens is an open channel for your threaten their survival globally. Most are challenged with the elusive issue of contributions, views and remarks. I hope taxa known to be at risk are relatively sustainability. However, this should not readers share my view that the small, inhabiting insular or restricted be a task for individuals. Therefore, the contribution of Jess Lyons, the Editor, in habitats, and severely affected by BPSG has been created with the aim of proposing and designing Serpens serves habitat destruction and invasive bringing together scientists and as an example of the proactive spirit we species. On the other hand, a number conservationists from around the world need within the BPSG. of charismatic species are in high to foster global conservation actions BOAS AND PYTHONS IN THE NEWS HA NOI – The Convention on considered as "harmful wild animals" by Rural Development yesterday requested International Trade in Endangered Species the US. The announcement specifies departments in cities and provinces to send of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) recently prohibition in the import of live relevant announcements about the US's released an announcement outlining the specimens, including their sperm, eggs and new regulation to facilitate adjustments of prohibition of importing several species of hybrid specimens into the US, and the company production plans. Local pythons into the United States, including transport of these animals through the US departments were also requested to the python molurus bivittatus, which is to other countries. The import of dead conduct more inspections and supervision being bred for export in Viet Nam. specimens and products made from the in the breeding and trading of wild animals According to the announcement, four parts of dead pythons, however, are not to prevent violations of Vietnamese laws species of pythons, including the eunectes prohibited. Following the announcement, and CITES rules. notaeus, python molurus, python the Viet Nam Administration of Forestry natalensis and python sebae, are under the Ministry of Agriculture and Viet Nam News 13/04/2012 Page 2 123 serpens Vol. 1 I No. 1 FROM THE ORIANNE SOCIETY WWW.ORIANNESOCIETY.ORG Exploring the Python Burmese pythons in their native range has been altered or substantially is limited to studies of their basking and removed by rotation since the early Dichotomy breeding behavior in Keoladeo National 1900s, with only some small, remnant Park, Rajsthan, India; a 24-day radio patches of primary forest left inside the A tale of two populations: Burmese telemetric study of a single individual in park. During our first year of study, we pythons of Bangladesh may be Hong Kong; and incidental natural conducted intensive field surveys in this dwindling in their native history observations. Detailed field forest-plantation mosaic landscape to environment while thriving as study on Burmese pythons is long collect baseline data on the python invaders half a world away in the overdue. With that in mind, our population and create a base for a Everglades research team embarked on a field longer-term ecological study. Our study of Burmese pythons in research team also spent hundreds of By Shahriar Caesar Rahman Bangladesh's Lawachara National Park hours in the field and systematically in May of 2011 with initial financial documented more than 500 individual Burmese pythons (Python molurus support from The Orianne Society and snakes and identified 35 snake species bivittatus) in the Florida Everglades have The Explorers Club. from Lawachara National Park and the been the subject of intensive scientific surrounding tea estates. Several of the study and media scrutiny in recent Both subspecies of Asian rock pythons, snake species were recorded for the years as concern grows about their Indian Python (Python molurus molurus) first time from Bangladesh. Despite the impact as invaders. It is suspected that and Burmese Python (Python molurus adversity herpetofauna may be facing— the non-native pythons pose a serious bivittatus), occur in Bangladesh. Once from indiscriminate killing, road threat to native ecosystems in Florida, common throughout the country, mortality, deforestation, and not just in their current range but far pythons are now fragmented into small degradation of the habitat—Lawachara beyond. The impact of pythons and and disjunct populations. They are now appears to be a snake hotspot in this their potential range expansion in other mostly found in the Sundarban region. Surrounded by tea plantations parts of the United States is not clearly mangrove forest in the southwest and and human habitats on almost all sides, understood, partly because of a lack of the mixed-evergreen forests in the Lawachara pythons are knowledge concerning their ecology and northeast and southeast of the country. opportunistically captured and behavior in their native range. A half a Habitat destruction is one major cause consumed by the indigenous tribal world away, Burmese pythons remain of their decline. Indiscriminate killing — people living adjacent to the forest. one of the least-studied python species out of fear or for consumption — is Pythons are also often found on the tea on the planet. Despite their tremendous another. estates, particularly in porcupine and popularity in the pet industry, Burmese pangolin burrows. pythons in native Asia are something of Lawachara National Park, a 1,250 a mystery. Drastically understudied in hectares mixed-evergreen forest, During our survey, we found an almost all aspects of their biology, very located in the northeast of Bangladesh, abandoned python nest as well as four little is known about the Burmese falls within the Indo-Burma Biodiversity python hatchlings in different parts of python, their ecology, and natural Hotspot, which supports some of the the tea plantation, indicating that history in Asia. Published knowledge on most unique and diverse biota on the pythons use the plantation areas for the ecology and behavior of free-ranging planet. Most of the original forest cover breeding purposes. This summer, we Page 3 461235 serpens Vol. 1 I No. 1 plan to implant radio transmitters and impact on the Everglades and potential range. The lack of basic information miniature temperature loggers on range expansion in North America. makes conservation and management several adult pythons to collect data on decisions difficult at best, and possibly movement, ranging patterns, and Our study site in Bangladesh is at inappropriate. Collecting information thermal preference of free-ranging nearly the same latitude as southern about their home-range size, habitat pythons. One of our future research Florida, which could allow for the use, thermoregulatory behavior (e.g. objectives is to answer some important collection of useful comparative data to basking) and other aspects of life scientific questions: How do pythons help understand the invasion process. history will be vital for conservation and react to thermal variation management of this species in throughout the year? How much Bangladesh or anywhere in their time do they spend basking in native range.