Burmese Pythons
Claim: The python hunt has had both positive and negative effects on the environment.
Pythons have had both positive and negative effects on the environment. They eat pretty much everything in sight, they are bought as pets then thrown out into the wild once they get big, and people have been pretty irresponsible with them.
Pythons eat pretty much everything in sight, and since they are large, they eat a lot. “With no natural predators, these eating machines appear to be wiping out huge numbers of opossums, raccoons, and bobcats, as well as many bird species.” This is important to the reason of how the changes in the population of local animals because the population has been going down. Also stated in the article, “Think of a telephone pole, and then imagine a snake as big around the middle as that pole. That’s the Burmese python.” Since this snake is so huge, it can easily eat just about anything in sight, and it will eat a lot of whatever it finds, so the population goes way down.
…show more content…
Pythons are one of the pets that people are very irresponsible with.
“Can you imagine buying a wild animal without researching anything about it? And, when their pythons got too big, the owners got rid of them in the most irresponsible fashion: They just let them go into the Everglades or some other wild area.” This is important to the reason of the changes in the people with the pythons because with most pets, people do not release animals into the wild, but with pythons they do. The text also states, “Unfortunately, many of these owners, upon discovering that they had more snake than they could handle, have resorted to the worst possible solution and released the snakes back into the wild.” Since people have been so irresponsible with these giant snakes, we are having to put up with the consequences from not being smart with the creatures we call
“pets”. Pythons are one of the animals people buy just because they look cool. “An exotic pet dealers warehouse that housed nearly 900 Burmese pythons was destroyed, and many of its pythons escaped.” This is important to the reason of the changes to the environment because until the warehouse was destroyed, there were not many pythons in the area, if any. In the text, “The Burmese python is a magnificent and powerful animal.” If this is the reason to why people buy pythons, then they obviously doesn't even think about what might happen. It is like saying “I am going to buy a tiger because they are the largest cat.” Since it is so big, do you even stop and consider that since they are larger than you, and they are carnivorous, do you even think that they might just eat you, or even overpower you and get away? Pythons have had some positive effects on the environment, such as making people think twice before buying a large pet, but they have mostly negative effects such as making other animal populations go way down. People really need to be careful on what they buy as pets, because it can have consequences that are very serious.
Common Name: Burmese Python Scientific Name: Python Molurus Bivittatus I. Introduction One of the five largest species of snakes in the world is now finding a home in the Florida Everglades. The Burmese python has a dark colored eye-catching patterned skin and is known for its calm and relaxed temperament. Because of the attractiveness of their skin pattern and docile nature, it is one of the large snakes of choice among reptile owners. Unfortunately, these snakes can reach huge lengths and weigh upwards of 200lbs making them difficult to keep. As carnivores, Burmese pythons kept as pets need a diet of small rodents or rabbits.
The sight of the snake is so heartbreaking that even the man is left to rethink
First of all, The snakes are destroying the ecosystem. According to, Burmese Python Not the Ideal Pet, " With no natural predators, these eating machines appear to be wiping out huge numbers of opossums, raccoons, and bobcats, as well as many bird species." This evidence shows that the pythons are eating and destroying all of these animals leading to early extinction which can affect all of the other species that rely on those animals the pythons are eating. Burmese python Not The Ideal Pet also states, "Tens of thousands of Burmese pythons are estimated to be living in the Everglades" This shows that thousands of snakes living on the everglades are destroying these poor animals that don’t deserve this.
Unable to handle their giant snakes, and unable to find new homes for them, some owners illegally release them into the wild. They are also an invasive species, which means that they are not constrained by natural factors as much as they were in their native habitat. Invasive species have the potential to harm their new environments. The release of Burmese pythons in South Florida is especially troublesome because the subtropical climate and the vast undisturbed habitats of the Everglades enable the species to thrive.
This adds to the reader’s sympathy because he didn’t provoke the man’s attack and did nothing to deserve what happened to him. He was punished despite being completely innocent. Though the snake does not pose a direct threat, he is an extremely powerful creature and a great asset to the beauty of nature. He “felt no necessity of getting out of anybody’s path,” showing his confidence in himself. Though he is confident, he is not arrogant. He does not cower at the sight of the man, nor does he try to threaten him. He simply stands his ground confidently, waiting for the man to dictate his next move. This trait of the snake causes the reader to respect him and appreciate his position of power, reinforcing their sympathetic feelings. The snake’s death was slow and painful, and the author described all of the gruesome details in order to further affect the reader. The man himself admits that “it was a nasty sight”. First, he hacked about in the paper bag bush until he “dragged
The comparison of the rattlesnake to a bigger, more frightening, and yet less deadly creature makes the former seem dangerous. While a blacksnake would “flee at the sight of a man”, the rattler proved its fearlessness with the way he “held his ground”. The rattler is cocky, and for good reason, because his poison could kill the man much easier than the theoretical blacksnake could. The man is in a life-threatening situation and the reader is likely to sympathize with his fear and worry. The author uses violent diction when describing the snake to make us see him as a vicious creature, in need of killing to keep others safe. Even dead, the rattler “may still bite”. He needs to be kept as far as possible from people - especially vulnerable people, such as young children - in order to protect them. The author includes this hostile wording to bring awareness to the fact that the snake is remorseless, even in death, and that taking its life is noble and just. Finally, the snake’s “little song of death” is personified negatively by the man to show that the snake is the villain in the story. Life is, according to the rattlesnake, “dear and would be dearly sold”. It comes to light in this phrase that the snake is looking for revenge from the man’s actions. The rattler is not as innocent as he may have initially seemed. As he attempts at the man’s life to bring
Ménez, Andre’. The Subtle Beast: Snakes, from Myth to Medicine. New York, New York: CRC Press, 2003.
The invasive species, the Burmese Python has done irreparable damage to the Everglades National Park in Florida. A steady decline in mammals has been observed since the introduction of Burmese pythons occurred. Burmese pythons were first introduced into the United States as part of the pet trade which then led to the escape or intentional release out into the wild. The first notation of these species arriving was in the year 2000. However, within just eleven years this invasive species had done such a large amount of damage to Florida’s Ecosystem that many species had gone almost completely extinct.
There are invaders among us, they are not alien or human, but Burmese Pythons. Arguably one of the most beautiful and unique parts of nature remaining in the United States is rapidly being destroyed by the Burmese Python. It has enormously impacted the Everglades in a negative way. The beautiful indigenous animals have quickly disappeared and new predators surface as we dig deeper into the Everglades. This fierce animal is a constrictor, squeezing the life out of its prey. The Pythons tight grip sucks the life out of its prey and swallows it whole. “It sounded like a joke when news reported Burmese Pythons were invading the Everglades in 2000” states USA Today. Pythons are slithering their way through the Florida Everglades with a big appetite and a similar habitat as their original home in Asia. Now, they have marked their territory permanently and there may be nothing scientists can do in order to prevent this issue.
The piece I chose to do my literary analysis on was the article, The Truth About Invasive Species, written by Alan Burdick. The article states that invasive species are all around us, but the area with the most prominent amount is the suburbs of Miami. It goes into detail about how abundant invasive species are in this area. Most people who would see a strange animal in their lawn or area would be bemused, however for the people of Southern Florida, this is a recurring scene. Burdick states that “virtually everyone in the South Florida, including Hardwick, has a neighbor with a backyard menagerie of lucrative critters on hold for resale”. Burdick describes both how an invasive species is introduced into an ecosystem, and the impact the have on other species upon their arrival.
The effect the reader perceives in the passage of Rattler is attained from the usage of the author¡¯s imagery. The author describes the pre-action of the battle between the man and the snake as a ¡°furious signal, quite sportingly warning [the man] that [he] had made an unprovoked attack, attempted to take [the snake¡¯s] life... ¡± The warning signal is portrayed in order to reveal the significance of both the man¡¯s and the snake¡¯s value of life. The author sets an image of how one of their lives must end in order to keep the world in peace. In addition, the author describes how ¡°there was blood in [snake¡¯s] mouth and poison dripping from his fangs; it was all a nasty sight, pitiful now that it was done.¡± This bloody image of snake¡¯s impending death shows the significance of the man¡¯s acceptance toward the snake. In a sense, the reader can interpret the man¡¯s sympathy toward the snake because of the possibility that he should have let him go instead of killing him.
The invasive reptiles are eating almost everything in sight like raccoons, opossums, bobcats, alligators and many federally protected animals like the Key Largo wood rat and Wood stork. There have been cases of children and pets being eaten or even squeezed to death by the large snakes in their own yards.
The snake was not aware of the man’s intentions was cautious but not yet preparing for an attack. The rattlesnake “lay ridged” through its mistrust of the man did not feel threatened so his “body was undulant” not preparing for an attack. Because of its natural instincts the snake was wary of the man’s presence but did not feel provoked enough to set up a defense. The usual instincts would have been to give a strong attack but choose not to do so. Still attentive to the man’s possible actions, the snake presents him with a warning for both their sake. Therefore as the man raised his weapon the snake set up its rattling and “shook his fair but furious signal” warning the man he “made an unprovoked attack”. The snake had not planned on attacking the man so instead of reacting swiftly the snake had given the man a warning. By doing so the snake shows its value of life because he left the man chance in avoiding an outcome with death for either side. Consequently having misjudged the man’s intent it is left with little time to protect itself from an unexpected attack. With the man suddenly attacking the snake with a hoe it “struck passionately” until it “was soon dead”. As a result of not being able to assemble an attack the snake is left with it’s only chance of winning by striking hard but with ineffective moves. Thus readers feel sympathy for the snake because it had not called for an attack that would have taken either
The Everglades provides a healthy ecosystem for plants and animals but it has predators that endanger the wildlife that live there. Exotic pet owners often dump their invasive pet snakes that don’t normally have a habitat
Evidence of the overpopulating pythons is “Tens of thousands of Burmese Pythons are estimated to be living in the Everglades”(Source 2). This shows how much pythons are living in the everglades, people are trying to change this, but they are barely going make a dent. Another reason is, “I’m not in love with the idea of the python challenge. Yes, the alarming growth of the burmese pythons in the everglades is a big problem”(Source 4). This is explaining that this is not the best solution because this was caused by mankind. The alarming amount of Burmese pythons is obviously a problem, but because it was an event cause by mankind, it’s doesn’t make this the best