Brown boiga aggressive and poisonous, but its toxin is too weak to pose a serious threat to an adult, although may be dangerous for the baby

Pavel Kirillov / wikimedia.org

On the island of GUAM, which is an unincorporated organized territory of the United States, continues many years of fighting Bogi population of brown snakes, which got there during the Second world war and was a disaster for the local fauna. Military us air base Andersen dumped from a helicopter poisoned by acetaminophen (paracetamol) bait – a dead newborn mice, according to the TV station KUAM.

This method is used by the military in cooperation with the service of wildlife conservation of the Ministry of agriculture since 2012. Initially poisoned food for reptiles thrown by hand. So, in 2013, was dropped 2 thousand mice. Then the technology was perfected, and now capsules with bait scattered automatically. All on a fenced territory with an area of 55 ha, off which snake can’t was dropped 6 thousand capsules.

On //t.co/HYatwhVZiR: Brown tree snake bait aerial system used up north //t.co/cd4GTHXXay

— KUAM News (@kuamnews) on 22 March 2019.

Currently, the population of brown Bogi on the island is estimated at 1-2 million individuals. Per 1 km2 of the island has up to 2 thousand snakes of this species. During a normal work to catch annually up to 21 thousand individuals. Following the dumping of poisoned mice scheduled for June of this year.

When is a snake s-s-s-s-scary? ?
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When it’s an invasive brown tree snake on Guam?? BTS caused the extinction of most of GUAM’s birds. Learn how we are working with partners like @USNavy @USGS and @USDA to make GUAM’s forests safe for birds at //t.co/f6bL97aTZG pic.twitter.com/zs5luh9f6A

— Russia Pacific Region (@USFWSPacific) March 26, 2019.

Brown boiga aggressive and poisonous, but its toxin is too weak to pose a serious threat to an adult human, although it may be dangerous for the baby. But a huge population with no natural enemies GUAM snakes for the locals and for the island’s ecosystem as a whole turned into a genuine disaster, says Deutsche Welle.

And without that not too the rich fauna of GUAM is sorely thinned: out of the 12 who lived here before birds 10 were completely destroyed, the remaining 2 are on the verge of extinction, populations of lizards and bats declined sharply. All of the food chain on the island were broken: the unprecedented multiplied the spiders disappeared many insects that negatively affect the agriculture of GUAM and flora in General.

Environmental damage is compounded by economic: snakes and then – on average two hundred times a year, cause a short-circuit aerial power lines, leaving without electricity the individual homes, entire villages or military installations.

Way to reduce the population of brown Bogi most promising is the version with the poisoned bait. Each mouse body was hanging from a parachute from a dense paper: the scientists wanted the lure was dropping a stone down, and slowly planned and stuck in the branches of trees and shrubs, have now got it to where all the snakes. After that their activity on experimental plots decreased sharply.

The project continues for the sixth year, and is probably satisfied with the results specialists.