New "pet" at work.

Last week the landscaper's found this little fellow minding his own business, doing his own thing - we now have him in a cage on the front desk...hopefully they are planning on letting him go soon. He is a Jackson's Chameleon. We don't see them very often in Kihei as they usually prefer cooler, damper areas of the Island.

12 Jackson's were introduced to the Island of Oahu, Hawaii in 1972. When they arrived from Africa they were so stressed from their long voyage that the pet shop owner released them into his garden to revive them - the rest is history! Someone told me that we are now the main suppliers of Jackson's for the US.

Aloha!

The pet shop owner released chameleons in his garden to make them feel better. One does not get much dumber than that, I guess. In an IQ test between that guy and a rusty fence post, the pet shop owner would come in third.

Did I ever show you a picture of Lucy le Ball Python (Lucille Ball Python), our new baby? We love her to bits. She is just a joy to behold. It's our first snake. I find her strikingly beautiful. Gail and I are more the dog and cat set but they are forbidden by the association where we live. Here is Lucy surfing the net with me on my laptop 2 weeks ago or so.


Aloha.
Pu'ole, a.k.a. Sylvain.

Jackson's in Kihei now! I work up in Pukalani once in a while; they are easy to find in the trees there. I hope there haven't made it to Pu'u Kole; they destroy native bug populations.

They are just starting to be a problem here. Some folks buy them, take them home, and feel sorry for them just like the pet shop owner.

Lucy Le Ball surely is beautiful Pu'ole, but I just can't warm up to a snake although I realize what an important niche they have in the order of things! It sounds as if Lucy is good company while you are surfing though! I My grandson has some kind of python that he is very fond of, which runs (or I should say, slithers) around the house - it's the feeding that I find upsetting, and I am no fan of rats and mice - go figure!

Yep, Dave - I have never seen a Jackson's here in my garden, so I was very surprised that they found one in Kihei as it's not their prefered habitat at all, and the guys tell me that they are begining to see them quite often...unfortunately the poor little thing won't last long in the office judging by the way the guys take care of anything living we happen to have in there, including themselves....What bug populations do Jackson's decimate (I am hoping you say white fly and spider mite!) the fellows have BOUGHT crickets and mealy worms for him - I expect they eat everything in their path however....Lord, one wonders how they make it from Island to Island. If they get a foot hold on the BI, surely your area will be ideal being cool and dampish.

Horribly voggy here for the last few days without the trades.

Yes Jenn, the Jackson's eat everything they can fit in their mouths! I couldn't point out any particular species of native bugs that they eat, just whatever they come across. They become problems in native habitats.

The longer I live here the more I realize how very delicate the Hawaiian Isles are...everything that can get a foothold here goes rampant. My particular hatreds are Kiave and African Tulip trees. They seem to have the ability to grow into formidable trees while your back is turned, and spend their whole lives spewing seeds all over the place with real malicious intent to take over the place. As for guava - no, don't get me started!

Lucy is not allowed to roam all over the house. She stays quietly in her aquarium, where she lives in her hideout most of the day. They are nocturnal and she would be very unhappy if let loose because they need a minimum temperature of 80 degrees Farenheit to be happy. Plus, the floors are all ceramic here. The poor baby would go into hypothermia after a while. But she is very good company. She'll grow to 4 feet. She's 2 1/2 feet now and growing. The feeding bothered me at first but then I got over it.

I agree with you that the Islands are to be protected but it's not just the Islands, it's the whole planet. Introduced species are taking over new ecosystems all the time, decimating the local species for lack of predators. The planet became a village and it's overrun by invading species. You should see the fish one can catch in any irrigation canal here. Why go to the pet shop to buy tropical fish when they're right there in the canal? And what about those melalucas they planted here by the millions so long ago in an effort to drain the Everglades? They're everywhere and it's getting worse every day. How misguided can you get when you want to drain the Everglades! Don't get me started, either.

Take care, all and fond Alohas
Pu'ole, a.k.a. Sylvain.

Jenn, that sure is an interesting animal! I have never seen one before. Thanks for sharing! I don't think we have them here.....thank goodness! It looks vicious! haha!

Ohhhhhh Lucille Python? You have an admirer....
Monty says you're Hawt! LOL!


(Sorry I got OT...nice cham!)

You have the cane toads (Bufo marinus) in Hawaii as well, which are also devastating the local fauna. We got our cane toads from Hawaii. In their native habitat they normally have a density of 20 per 100 metres of shoreline, here it can get to 1,000 to 2,000 per 100 metres. That represents a massive replacement of native biomass with cane toad biomass. People who release exotics to give themselves a "warm, fuzzy, feeling of kindness" are in reality releasing an environmental holocaust.

In the few short years since the cane toads reached this area they've wiped out the Northern Quoll populations and 3 species of goanna, that I know of. They seriously reduced numbers of Frill-necked Lizards, displaced a lot of frog species and a lot of snakes have disappeared.

There are serious repercussions from what some people consider an "innocent act".

HAHAHA and I was told the Cane Toads were brought here by the Auzzies for the Cane Fields...no particular reason. Finally our dog doesn't go after them as they are poisonous to dogs.....

Yuck...

Carol

Carol, the cane toads were considered the best pest control in the cane fields, against the cane beetle. There's a little 'truism' that was learned here and is often quoted now: cane beetle larvae live underground, and the adults fly, the cane toads neither burrow nor do they fly. But they do have a devastating effect of other fauna and pets.

The first 'export' of cane toads from their native habitat was to PR. From there they were taken to numerous countries in the carribean and to Hawaii. The Australian cane farmers went to Hawaii to get theirs. Just over 100 were brought in, about 1935. Now the area occupied by them here would be about a quarter the size of mainland USA and their numbers would be in the hundreds of millions.

Now, if you want to hear something pretty funny/bizarre. They have evolved further out here and because they travel long distances they've developed longer legs than the original ones. This has however stressed their systems and a lot of adult toads develop arthritis. Unfortunately not enough to cripple them as a migratory species.

Bufo marinus, Cane Toads, were introduced to Hawai'i from Puerto Rico in 1932, to get rid of insects in Sugar Cane fields.

AH, glad for the facts! Probably the same geniuses that introduced the mongoose to kill the rats!!! But (for those who don't know) mongoose are diurna and rats are nocturnal so none were bothered and both flourished!!!! As they say "Today's solution is tomorrow's problem"....

This message was edited Apr 30, 2009 7:09 AM

You're right Carol, it was pretty much the same group of geniuses. They were introduced in 1883 to control rats in Sugar Cane fields.

Same group of brainiacs that recommended that the State of Florida dump millions of melaleuca seeds from planes into the Everglades in a vain attempt to drain the swamps for real estate development. The result: melaleucas everywhere and it turns out it didn't drain the Everglades. Now, THAT would have been an ecelogical disaster of biblical proportions.

Idiots are a dime a dozen and for that price, you get 15 of them.

Take care, all.
Sylvain.

My people have said (for seven generations) that the best thing for Florida would have been to place a million dollar toll at any point of entry.

Magialuna, who are your "people"? Keeper's of the moon sign?

Rachel