pwilson96's Favorites

NB: It was actually quite difficult to differentiate between T sadana and T adelpha. However I want to go with T sadana because of the support it got from the experts for this.
Ref: inaturalist.org/observations/505379

To this date, the second largest Burmese python caught in the Florida Keys. The animal was located in a novel way, it had eaten a Virginia opossum outfitted with a satellite telemetry collar. After a set period of inactivity, the collar would send off signal indicating that the animal was dead. Well this happened, and then the collar would move a few hundred feet, then go back on mortality signal, then move again and so on. After a week of this, we decided to go see what was up with the animal, so we tracked it to the hardwood-mangrove edge underground, odd for a opossum. We set up a grid of camera traps and baited them with cat food and no opossum showed up. A few days later, we tried digging at the point where the signal was strongest, thinking that maybe the collar slipped and after an hour we saw scales! We were able to extract the python that day after quite a fight pulling her from her burrow.
(1) Myself and other CLNWR employees holding the python
(2) First image of the python in the underground cavity
(3) Python being measured
(4) Python's enormous head
(5) Location of the collar (RIP Prairie Dog) in the python's GIT
(6) X-Ray of the collar within the python
Point submitted to EDDMapS and under review.
TL: 383.54cm
SVL: not taken
Mass: 28122.7kg
Sex: Female

'Sleeping beauty'

Resting in a depression on a large vine (lliana) along the trail. It is here for hours, until the rain poured.

Inasmuch as its venom is lethal, the viper is quite vulnerable in this passive state - can easily be picked up and killed by locals, especially for food in this region. In fact, this viper species, like the gaboon, is a popular animal protein source.
Being found behind, or beyond the cutline of the forest reserve determines survival - life, or death for the spectacular wildlife.