Giant snakes in the Garden State?
A 10-foot Burmese python found on a Lacey, N.J., driveway in 2006
By 2100, parts of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Colorado and Washington are projected to have suitable climates for the Indian or Burmese python, according to a new federal report.
Suitable climates for that species now include most of California, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia and South and North Carolina, the U.S. Geological Survey report says.
The python is a giant, nonvenomous constrictor that has reached 27 feet and 401 pounds in captivity. But many experts say it's very rare for such pythons to exceed 5 meters (16.4 feet), the report says.
The report examines the ecological risks of giant snakes becoming established in the United States.
And there's a high risk that the Indian or Burmese python will become established.
Nine very large constrictor species already have been found in the wild in Florida. And there's evidence that three, including the Burmese python, reproduce, the report says.
At the moment, the pet trade is "the only probable pathway by which these species would become established in the United States," the report says.
And by now, you must be wondering about the chances of being eaten by an enormous snake.
The largest snakes are "probably capable of killing an adult human," but "most seem disinclined to do so," the report says.
Only the larger Burmese/Indian python, among several others, have killed adult humans, according to the report.
File photo by Robert Ward