The Monitor

October, 2010

From the Editor's Desk

Newsletter Material

This is YOUR club. The more you give into it, the more you will get out of it. Your opinions, suggesions and submissions are welcome. Please feel free to submit any ideas or suggestions to: luvcatz7@yahoo.com

President: Melissa Coakley
Vice-President: Michele Patton
Secretary: Carrie Gardner Treasurer: Doreen E. Saccardo
Chairman of the Board: John Soto
Editor: Carrie Gardner
Co-Editor: Doreen Saccardo
Field Trip Chair: Doreen Saccardo
Webmaster: Carrie Gardner

NEXT MEETING:
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
George Heinrich on Turtle Conservation
Moccasin Lake Nature Park
Clearwater, FL
727-462-2976

~~~~~~~~DON'T MISS IT~~~~~~~~

Alton of Smelt Feed and Pet Supply is donating a $15.00 gift certificate every month for our raffle. His store is located at 4116 East 7th Avenue, Tampa, FL 33605, 813-248-2359

Web Page info: Calendar page is updated all the time as is Adoptions and Advertisements.

If you have photos you would like added to the "Club Photos" page, please email Carrie to have them added. YES, WE HAVE A PHOTO ALBUM THAT IS UP AND RUNNING AGAIN!

Carrie's Notes

We would like to welcome back with open arms to Marilyn Zappone, who moved back into the area from PA. We're so happy to have you back!!

Condolences to Vice-President Michele Patton and her family on the passing of her Grandmother. You all are certainly in our thoughts.

Florida has PASSED the "Python Ban Law". You must already have your permit to own an ROC species except for the anaconda - you have to have a permit by October 1st. You can no longer buy, sell, trade, acquire any Burmese pythons, Africa Rock pythons, reticulated pythons, anacondas, amethystine pythons, Nile monitors or any other animal they decide to put on the list.

If you have one of these animals and got your permit before July 1st, you can keep your CURRENT ROC species until their death. You cannot acquire more.

However, go to http://www.myfwc.com to look for a map for people who are legally able to take your ROC if you no longer want it. And Amnesty Days will continue. For more information, please see our website or go to the above site.

Please, join www.usark.org's mailing list to see what you can do to help with the increasing number of proposed bills that are coming. Become a member or donate some money.

The Lacey Act Hearing has been heard. The 30-day extension that was granted to USARK has passed. Please go to www.usark.org to find out what is going on. If this passes, there is no telling what other reptiles will be added to the list!

Ciao,
Carrie

Doreen's Column

Hi there~~~

*****We had our annual scavenger hunt in September. Since we only had enough people for one group…..WE WON!!!!! This is always an enjoyable time to be able to explore this beautiful park.

*****Repticon had their show at the end of September and we sold a lot of snake bags and a few trinkets. The winner of the red foot raffle was a little girl who kept coming over to our table checking on the tortoise and playing with it. She bonded right away and I am glad she was the winner.

*****We had our second annual Everglades trip this past weekend. What a terrific trip. We spotted 27 snakes (including only one Burmese Python) in two days beating last year's record of 27 in three days. The group was Bill Murray, Melissa Coakley, Michele Patton, Melody and I. I always love these trips because we see so many different habitats and varieties of plants and animals. We also saw a red velvet ant which is actually a wingless wasp. When I Googled this, the picture did not look like the creature we saw so now I am not sure what we were looking at, but it was cool nonetheless. I will be putting my pictures on our photo bucket site in the very near future so keep an eye out for those.

*****We unanimously decided not to move the auction (Doreen gives a BIG sigh of relief) and we also decided not to have beer and wine. So we will hold it at Moccasin Lake in March. More about that as time goes on.

*****George Heinrich to speak in October. His talk will be on the Florida Turtle Conservancy Trust: Working to conserve Florida's rich turtle diversity. (and I certainly do like RICH turtles). George's talks are always very informative and interesting. Don't miss this one.

*****November our guest speaker will be Jim Peters from Central Florida Herp Society

*****I was looking at Bill Love's photos he posted and I noticed he had one of Bill Haast who is 100 years old and he is still milking venomous snakes. What an awesome man.

*****I want to continually thank Carrie for doing all she does for the club. She keeps up with the newsletter and the website. I also want to thank Alice for keeping up with the member list and my monthly reminder call.

*****Happy Birthday to:
October 5 ~~ Jonathan Pessas
October 17 ~~ Michele Patton
November 4 ~~ Charles Martin
November 9 ~~ AJ Morales (we miss you)
November 15 ~ Mike Henry

*****If your name is not on the birthday list, let me know and I will add it. (Either I forgot or don't have it).

*****Thank you to all who do their part for this club. That is what makes our society the GREATEST in Florida.

*****Have a herpy day!! Doreen~~

A Review of October Everglades Trip From President Melissa Coakley

This past weekend Suncoast Herpetological Society participated in the 2nd annual Everglades trip! The fearless herping group consisted of myself, Bill, Doreen, Michele, and my friend Melody. We left on Saturday morning and we made it to Big Cypress Preserve at 3pm. We walked around a little at the visitor's center. While we were there Bill spotted two manatees swimming peacefully along. We also saw a couple of gators hanging out by some fishermen. Our next stop was the Fairway Inn – we checked in quickly and made it to the park several minutes later. Of course we started hunting right away! As soon as we entered the park we saw our first snake – a DOR at the entrance to Anhinga Trail. Bill said it was a Diamondback… it was difficult to tell because the vultures were already swarming around. We walked the Anhinga Trail and Gumbo Limbo where we saw plenty of alligators and one very cute toad. It was a beautiful night – the temperature was 77 degrees. We were all feeling very good and I for one could not wait to start road cruising! I was a little nervous because it was my first time cruising with my friend Melody and I wanted to make sure she got to see lots of snakes! When it started to get darker we noticed the moon was very small, only a tiny sliver! This is important because if it had been a full moon we would have been less likely to encounter snakes – they don't hunt as often by such bright light. So, the temperature was great and the moon was the right size. We were off to a fantastic start! We saw a DOR garter at 7:45pm. A few minutes later we found our 3rd snake of the night – a cottonmouth. He was a good size and we all got some nice photos of him in the middle of the road. After we moved him safely to the side of the road we spotted another DOR (unidentified). After that we saw a DOR cottonmouth, a water snake, a scarlet snake and a ribbon snake. The scarlet snake was beautiful and it was a new species for Bill and I – one of the most exciting things about snake hunting, to me, is adding a new species to my "lifetime list". A few minutes after that we spotted a DOR ribbon snake. By this time we were near Flamingo Marina. We stopped and walked around for a little while. While we were there we spotted a large crocodile. Every time I go to the Everglades I get excited about the crocodiles. There is just something fascinating about finding one right here in Florida! We also spent some time looking for eye-shine. We were rewarded for our efforts when a decent sized gator approached us from the right… he was swimming slowly toward our lights. When we left the marina we spotted a DOR scarlet snake. This snake was a little larger than the first scarlet and just as strikingly beautiful. At 9:15pm we found a banded water snake. Doreen successfully moved him off the road. After that we stopped and walked around. The sky was so bright – I can't believe how many stars are visible without light pollution! We found several tiny little green frogs – quite possibly squirrel tree frogs. We found our 13th snake of the night a few minutes later: a DOR garter. After that we spotted a young cottonmouth. He was cute with his bright yellow tail! He started shaking his tail at us trying to entice us! We found several DOR snakes after that including a couple of ribbon snakes, another cottonmouth, and what might have been a crayfish snake. We got lucky a few minutes later and found a nice cottonmouth. While we were stopped to check out the cottonmouth we spotted a very cute garter snake. Melody picked him up and moved him off the road so that he would be safe from any passing vehicles. Again we saw several DOR snakes, followed by a very small scarlet snake. At just about 2 minutes to midnight we found snake number 23 – a good sized cottonmouth. This snake had a jet black tail but still had a little pattern throughout the rest of his body. Melody tried to move him out of the road but he jumped back at her – he was feisty! Shortly after that we ran into a very sassy little water snake. This snake was very "strikey". He struck at our hooks several times, but, he stayed and posed for as many photos as we wanted. We decided to leave after that because it had really slowed down – we saw only a couple more DOR snakes that night. We left the park and stopped to grab some fast food. The next morning we got up and had breakfast and headed back into the park. We filled the day with lots of hiking. We saw several gators (including some adorable babies!) and a really neat "tough" looking toad. We found one more DOR – however, there wasn't much left of the snake so we couldn't identify him. The last snake of the trip was found by Bill – it was a black racer sitting in a perfect little position near some water on the side of the road.

We ended up with 27 snakes again this year – not bad for less than 24 hours of hunting! The funny thing is, we found 27 snakes when we went with the club last year! Also, Bill and I went to the Everglades in 2008 and… you guessed it: 27 snakes.

It was a great trip and I really want to thank Bill, Doreen, Michele, and Melody for making it so much fun. I am already looking forward to next year… the year we will finally find 28 snakes in the Everglades.

Michele's Musings

Cool and interesting facts about Florida's Everglades

* Alligators play a very important role in the balance of nature in the Everglades region. During the dry season, gators use their tail and feet to enlarge ponds and other depressions in order to reach water levels. The gator holes provide an important habitat as well as providing water and nourishment to many other animals as they wait for the warmer wet season.

* Snakes, most often recipients of poor press from uniformed sources, have 26 species present in the Everglades Park and its surrounding areas. Snakes in the Everglades are not observed as easily as most visitors expect because there are significantly fewer snakes present in the area than most people perceive and they are less active during the drier and cooler months when tourism is at its peak.

* The 4 venomous snakes found in the Everglades are the dusky pygmy rattlesnake, Eastern diamondback rattlesnake, cottonmouth or water moccasin, and the Eastern coral snake.

* Coral snakes are the rarest of the Everglades venomous snakes, they have two imitators that mimic their color patterns but are not venomous; the scarlet kingsnake and the Florida scarlet snake.

* There are several anole species found in the Everglades; the Florida chameleon or green anole, and two anole species that are native to Cuba, the brown anole and the Knight anole.

* There are two gecko species found in the Everglades, the Indo-Pacific gecko an exotic species native to southern Asia and the Florida reef gecko, the smallest gecko species found in the U.S.

* The Everglades has 16 species of turtles, some terrestrial and other preferring either salt water or fresh water. The most common turtle found is the box turtle.

* In years past, 4 species of sea turtles nested on Florida's beaches. Constant pressure from hunting and land development has greatly reduced the number of sea turtles. Today only the Atlantic loggerhead still commonly nests in the Park. The Atlantic hawksbill, an endangered sea turtle may still be occasionally seen around the coral reefs offshore but there are no known nesting records within the Park in recent years.

* Other turtles found within the Everglades region include the striped mud turtle, stinkpot, diamondback terrapin, Peninsula Cooter, Florida redbelly turtle, Florida chicken turtle, gopher tortoise, Atlantic green turtle and the Atlantic ridley.

History of Gadsden Flag from Wikipedia

The Gadsden flag is a historical American flag with a yellow field depicting a rattlesnake coiled and ready to strike. Positioned below the snake is the legend "DON'T TREAD ON ME" . The flag was designed by and is named after American general and statesman Christopher Gadsden. It was also used by the United States Marine Corps as an early motto flag.

Snake symbolism

The use of the timber rattlesnake as a symbol of the American colonies can be traced back to the publications of Benjamin Franklin. In 1751, he made the first reference to the rattlesnake in a satirical commentary published in his Pennsylvania Gazette. It had been the policy of Britain to send convicted criminals to America, so Franklin suggested that they thank the British by sending rattlesnakes to England.

In 1754, during the French and Indian War, Franklin published his famous woodcut of a snake cut into eight sections. It represented the colonies, with New England joined together as the head and South Carolina as the tail, following their order along the coast. Under the snake was the message "Join, or Die". This was the first political cartoon published in an American newspaper.

As the American Revolution grew, the snake began to see more use as a symbol of the colonies. In 1774, Paul Revere added it to the title of his paper, the Massachusetts Spy, as a snake joined to fight a British dragon. In December 1775, Benjamin Franklin published an essay in the Pennsylvania Journal under the pseudonym American Guesser in which he suggested that the rattlesnake was a good symbol for the American spirit:
"I recollected that her eye excelled in brightness, that of any other animal, and that she has no eye-lids—She may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance.—She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage.—As if anxious to prevent all pretensions of quarreling with her, the weapons with which nature has furnished her, she conceals in the roof of her mouth, so that, to those who are unacquainted with her, she appears to be a most defenseless animal; and even when those weapons are shewn and extended for her defense, they appear weak and contemptible; but their wounds however small, are decisive and fatal:—Conscious of this, she never wounds till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of stepping on her.—Was I wrong, Sir, in thinking this a strong picture of the temper and conduct of America?"

Gadsden's flag

In fall 1775, the United States Navy was established to intercept incoming British ships carrying war supplies to the British troops in the colonies. To aid in this, the Second Continental Congress authorized the mustering of five companies of Marines to accompany the Navy on their first mission. The first Marines that enlisted were from Philadelphia and they carried drums painted yellow, depicting a coiled rattlesnake with thirteen rattles (depicting the 13 colonies), and the motto "Don't Tread On Me." This is the first recorded mention of the future Gadsden flag's symbolism.

At the Congress, Continental Colonel Christopher Gadsden represented his home state of South Carolina. He was one of three members of the Marine Committee who were outfitting the first naval mission. It is unclear whether Gadsden took his inspiration from the Marines' drums, or if he inspired them himself.

Before the departure of that first mission, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the Navy, Commodore Esek Hopkins, received the yellow rattlesnake flag described above from Gadsden to serve as his distinctive personal standard.

Gadsden also presented a copy of this flag to the South Carolina legislature in Charleston, South Carolina. This was recorded in the South Carolina congressional journals:

Col. Gadsden presented to the Congress an elegant standard, such as is to be used by the commander in chief of the American navy; being a yellow field, with a lively representation of a rattle-snake in the middle, in the attitude of going to strike, and these words underneath, "Don't Step on Me!"

Contemporary significance

Considered one of the first flags of the United States, the flag was later replaced by the current Stars and Stripes (or Old Glory) flag. Since the Revolution, the flag has seen times of reintroduction as a symbol of American patriotism, a symbol of disagreement with government, or a symbol of support for civil liberties.

Flag of the Free State Project

For instance, unofficial usage of the Gadsden flag by the U.S. government has been seen, particularly in the wake of September 11, 2001, most notably by the Customs Service and harbor patrol boats in U.S. ports and individuals serving abroad in the U.S. military. The First Navy Jack, which was directly related to the Gadsden flag, has also been in use by the U.S. Navy, and since the terrorist attack on the WTC and pentagon, on all active naval ships. The rattlesnake from the flag is shown on the U.S. Army's Drill Sergeant Identification Badge.

Athletic apparel company Nike uses the image of a snake coiled around a soccer ball for an ongoing, patriotic "Don't Tread On Me" campaign in support of the United States men's national soccer team. The phrase has become a rallying cry for American soccer fans and the Gadsden flag can occasionally be seen at national team games. A representation of the rattlesnake is contained on the inside of their uniforms to be used in the 2010 World Cup. Coincidentally, USA opened the World Cup play against England. In 2006, the campaign was accompanied by a hip-hop song performed by team member Clint Dempsey entitled "Don't Step". The Philadelphia Union Major League Soccer expansion team, set to play in 2010, incorporated the coiled snake into its logo that was unveiled in May, 2009. The only differences between the team's logo and the snake on the Gadsden flag is that the snake on the team's logo lacks the rattle on its tail, and that it is displayed on a blue and gold background in the likeness of the municipal flag of the city of Philadelphia.

A Gadsden flag was presented to the town manager of Killington, Vermont, by a representative of the Free State Project after that town's 2004 vote to pursue secession from Vermont. The Free State Project adopted a unique version of the Gadsden Flag which bears the organization's mascot, a porcupine, rather than a snake.

On June 17, 2010 a dozen Gadsden Flags were presented to each elected board member at a public hearing of the Town of Grafton, New York by a citizen in opposition to the board's decision to replace the elected Assessors with a Sole Appointed Assessor without an opportunity for a public referendum vote on the issue. The action of the citizen represents the idea that "Taxation Without Elected Representation" is the right of the electors, not the elected.

The Gadsden Riders wear the flag to remind others about the history of the United States.

The Boy Scouts of America frequently fly this flag at camp outs, ceremonies, and jamborees.

The flag appears in the Disney animated television series Recess, raised above the home of the character Gustav, whose father is a Marine. It is seen in the first episode's segment titled, "The New Kid," which addresses individuality and tyranny.

For historical reasons, the flag is still popularly flown in Charleston, South Carolina, being the city where Christopher Gadsden first presented the flag, and where it was commonly used during the revolution, along with the blue and white crescent flag of pre-Civil War South Carolina. It also appears in a historical context in the 2000 film "The Patriot" in Charleston and in battle alongside the Old Glory flag. Metallica later used the flag on their self-dubbed "Black Album" as a song name ("Don't Tread on Me"), and on the cover of the album, the snake from the flag is in the lower right hand corner. 311's eighth studio album is titled "Don't Tread on Me released 2005, and also of significance is the album's title track of the same name. The New Jersey based punk rock group Titus Andronicus features one on the cover of their self-titled album, and the flag is frequently seen with them on tour. The flag has also been used as a critical prop in several movies and TV shows, such as in the final episode of Jericho, where it was flown to signal the titular town's independence.

Tea Party symbol

Beginning in 2009, the Gadsden Flag has become an adopted symbol of the American Tea Party movement. Tea Party activists have embraced the "Don't Tread on Me" flag and its message. Nationwide it serves as an alternative to the stars and stripes for Tea Party protesters upset at the current government yet still feeling patriotic. It was also seen being displayed by members of Congress at Tea Party rallies. Some lawmakers have dubbed it a political symbol due to the Tea Party connection, and the political nature of the tea party.

Hundreds of Snakes to be Released, Submitted by Dennis Beeker

CASSIA, FL --

Researchers got the go ahead to start breeding hundreds of snakes on a property in Lake County.

A non-profit group will study and breed eastern indigo snakes on 25 acres in Eastern Lake County near State Road 44.

The snakes are a threatened non-venomous species, native to the Southeast.

Researchers plan to breed the snakes in Lake County and keep about 200 snakes on the property.

They hope to eventually release a few hundred of the eastern indigo snakes a year across Florida where their populations have dwindled.

From "277 Secrets Your Snake and Lizard Wants You To Know" by Paulette Cooper

The Floridian Who's Been Bitten 166 Times or Miami on 100 Bites a Day

Almost every herper has heard of Bill Haast, founder and director of the Miami Serpentarium. Although he is now eight-seven (Editor's note: as of the writing of this book) years old, he still goes to work each day, milking more than twenty snakes for venom that will be used by researchers and antivenin manufacturers to save lives.

Bill admits he's slowed down a bit since the days that he averaged 100 snakes a day - his all time record was 500 snakes in one day - at what is surely one of the world's riskiest jobs. But not only does he have the satisfaction of doing a job which saves so many lives, but venom may sell for as much as $500.00 an ounce.

The reason why Bill has survived so many close calls is that, over the years, he has injected himself with diluted venom from over fifty different snakes. As a result, his blood is now rich with antibodies, that it's been transfused twenty-one times into critical bite victims.

Some of his own bites have been critical. The bite of a Siamese cobra during a live broadcast of Marlin Perkin's Zoo Parade almost killed him. He ended up on a respirator for two days, after he stopped breathing on his own.

Another really close call came when he was bitten by what may consider to be the most dangerous snake in the world - the saw-scaled viper - before there was antivenin for it in the United States. Some antivenin was found in Iran, and with the help of an assistant to then President George Bush, it was raced into this country to save him.

His latest - and hopefully - last bite was from a western diamondback, and that one caused him to go into convulsions. But that still didn't stop him, because as soon as he recovered, he went back to work. Gotta admire that kind of craziness, ah, dedication.

Bill's background is as colorful as his current job. He was once a snake handler for a roadside carnival, and he also learned about snakes when he was in the moonshine business in the Everglades. When asked by this author how he felt about continually risking his life each day with his current job, he said, "I continue to do it each day because I enjoy it. I don't even think of it as risky. If you hadn't reminded me of it, I wouldn't have even thought of it."

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Have a Spooky Halloween!
Until Next Month,
Carrie

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