Videos by Andrea Currylow
Entire photo-documented sequence from 01 June 2021–09 September 2021, including novel interaction... more Entire photo-documented sequence from 01 June 2021–09 September 2021, including novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida – the native bobcat (Lynx rufus) and the invasive Burmese python (Python bivittatus). A bobcat depredated an unguarded Burmese python nest and subsequently the python exhibited nest defense behavior following the return of both animals to the nest. First, a bobcat discovers an unguarded nest then proceeds to depredate, cache, and uncover the eggs over several days. The bobcat returns to find the female python back on the nest and later proceeds to swipe at the snake. After biologists attempted to the nest but leave the camera, the bobcat returns to scavenge discarded, inviable eggs over several weeks. This is the first documentation of any animal in Florida preying on python eggs, and the first evidence or description of such antagonistic interactions at a python nest. Photos were captured by USGS equipment in Big Cypress NP, FL, USA. 1 views
Papers by Andrea Currylow
Reptiles & Amphibians
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Journal of Wildlife Management, Aug 23, 2012
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PLOS ONE, Jul 6, 2012
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Forest Ecology and Management, Mar 1, 2017
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Crazy life of a tortoise conservationist.
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Conservation science and practice, Oct 7, 2021
In the context of conservation science and management, the Judas technique refers to outfitting a... more In the context of conservation science and management, the Judas technique refers to outfitting an animal (a Judas animal) with a radio transmitter or other identifier so that its movements can be tracked to locate conspecifics. Although this term is commonly used, some consider it offensive due to historical associations of the word Judas with anti‐Semitic sentiments. Thus, the term has a negative sentiment polarity (i.e., the assertion that words can have positive, negative, or neutral connotations). We investigated the etymology of the Judas term in peer‐reviewed scientific literature to outline its contextual introduction and use. Prior to the term being co‐opted by conservation scientists Judas [animal] was a common term in the livestock industry to describe animals used to lead herds to slaughter. Subsequently, the term has been published and promulgated through conservation‐related research and the literature. Due to a negative sentiment polarity linked to this term, especially among members of the public, alternative nomenclature may be preferred to increase objective and dispassionate scientific communication.
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Biology Open, Nov 15, 2021
ABSTRACTIdentifying which environmental and genetic factors affect growth pattern phenotypes can ... more ABSTRACTIdentifying which environmental and genetic factors affect growth pattern phenotypes can help biologists predict how organisms distribute finite energy resources in response to varying environmental conditions and physiological states. This information may be useful for monitoring and managing populations of cryptic, endangered, and invasive species. Consequently, we assessed the effects of food availability, clutch, and sex on the growth of invasive Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus Kuhl) from the Greater Everglades Ecosystem in Florida, USA. Though little is known from the wild, Burmese pythons have been physiological model organisms for decades, with most experimental research sourcing individuals from the pet trade. Here, we used 60 hatchlings collected as eggs from the nests of two wild pythons, assigned them to High or Low feeding treatments, and monitored growth and meal consumption for 12 weeks, a period when pythons are thought to grow very rapidly. None of the 30 hatchlings that were offered food prior to their fourth week post-hatching consumed it, presumably because they were relying on internal yolk stores. Although only two clutches were used in the experiment, we found that nearly all phenotypic variation was explained by clutch rather than feeding treatment or sex. Hatchlings from clutch 1 (C1) grew faster and were longer, heavier, in better body condition, ate more frequently, and were bolder than hatchlings from clutch 2 (C2), regardless of food availability. On average, C1 and C2 hatchling snout-vent length (SVL) and weight grew 0.15 cm d−1 and 0.10 cm d−1, and 0.20 g d−1 and 0.03 g d−1, respectively. Additional research may be warranted to determine whether these effects remain with larger clutch sample sizes and to identify the underlying mechanisms and fitness implications of this variation to help inform risk assessments and management.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.
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Conservation Physiology, 2017
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General and Comparative Endocrinology, 2013
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Ecosphere, Sep 1, 2021
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American Midland Naturalist, 2011
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Reptiles & amphibians, Jun 5, 2023
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Reptiles & amphibians, Mar 24, 2023
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Management of Biological Invasions, 2023
Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus Kuhl, 1820) are one of the world's largest snake speci... more Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus Kuhl, 1820) are one of the world's largest snake species, making them a highly successful and biologically damaging invasive predator in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Florida, USA. Though we have knowledge of python diet within this system, we understand very little of other interactions with native species. Effects native species have on invasive pythons, especially in the juvenile size class, are of particular interest as the prevalence of mortalities would inform potential population growth and trophic dynamics with native prey species. Native ophiophagous predators in Florida feed on smaller native snake species and it is unknown if they consistently recognize similarly sized juvenile invasive pythons as prey items. Using radiotelemetry, we found at least four native species within Big Cypress National Preserve that were implicated in juvenile python deaths, including three Florida cottonmouths (Agkistrodon conanti Gloyd, 1969), five American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis Daudin, 1802), one hispid cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus Say and Ord, 1825), and three mesomammals. One mortality was the result of an attempt to subdue a prey item 106% the size of the python, constituting the largest predator:prey size ratio ever reported in this size class. This finding may indicate that phenotypic variation in individual juvenile pythons includes behavior that could be maladaptive within the novel Florida environment. Here we describe some of the first confirmed cases of non-anthropogenic mortality in juvenile Burmese pythons in Florida and present evidence that invasive pythons in this size class are now being incorporated into the diets of native species in its invasive range. https://www.reabic.net/journals/mbi/2023/1/MBI_2023_Currylow_etal.pdf
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Ecology and Evolution, Feb 1, 2022
We describe several photo‐documented novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern ... more We describe several photo‐documented novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida—the native bobcat (Lynx rufus) and the invasive Burmese python (Python bivittatus). Over several days we documented a bobcat's depredation of an unguarded python nest and subsequent python nest defense behavior following the return of both animals to the nest. This is the first documentation of any animal in Florida preying on python eggs, and the first evidence or description of such antagonistic interactions at a python nest.
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Southeastern Naturalist, Jun 1, 2021
Abstract - Invasive predators are of conservation concern because they contribute to species decl... more Abstract - Invasive predators are of conservation concern because they contribute to species declines and extinctions worldwide. Interactions of native fauna and invasive predators can be complex, but understanding these relationships can guide management and restoration. Observations of these interactions are especially important for invaders with low detectability like Python bivittatus (Burmese Python) where data are sparse. Here, we provide the first detailed documentation of mammalian attacks on Burmese Pythons in Florida: 1 Lynx rufus (Bobcat) predation of an adult male python and 1 Ursus americanus floridanus (Florida Black Bear) non-lethal attack on an adult female python.
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Journal of Wildlife Diseases, Jul 1, 2017
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Videos by Andrea Currylow
Papers by Andrea Currylow
https://news.mongabay.com/2017/08/madagascars-radiated-tortoises-have-personalities-too/
-Endemic to Madagascar, radiated tortoises are Critically Endangered due largely to poaching for the illegal pet trade
-Looking at how corticosterone changes in a tortoise, scientists uncover two distinct personality types in the radiated tortoise
-Biologists argue that individual animals consistently react to different circumstances based on their personality
timber harvest techniques. This study is unique in its scale and duration, and provides much-needed insights into the ecological impacts of harvests typical of the Midwest. For readers’ convenience, we preface this information with a brief primer on ecosystem based management, the ecological roles of amphibians and reptiles, and an abbreviated description of forest dynamics. We hope this guide will aid land managers in designing management plans that maintain populations of these species across the landscape.
The greatest risk to the survival of a wild chelonian population is the loss of the adults, which solely contribute to the sustainability of a population (Congdon et al., 1993; 1994; Doak et al., 1994). Adults are now beginning to be more commonly found for sale in illicit online pet markets and recent population surveys have shown a significant decline of the wild adult population (Kiester et al., 2013; Mandimbihasina and Woolaver, 2014). Because the life-history of tortoises include delayed maturity coupled with an extremely long generation time equating to a slow reproductive rate, reproductive adults are critical to the recovery of the population (Pedrono et al., 2004). Therefore, it is crucial that adult animals remain in good health within the wild populations. Herein, we describe an adult Ploughshare Tortoise found in peril in the wild.
2013, we recorded morphometrics on 127 Ploughshare
Tortoises (Astrochelys yniphora) (Vaillant 1885) and
found previous reports of morphometrics to be lacking
the breadth of size this species can achieve. The
Ploughshare Tortoise is the largest extant tortoise in
Madagascar; however, it has previously been described
as reaching morphometrics that fall up to 36% short of
our findings. Using data presented herein, we propose
to update and add to the current species description,
offering a new standard metric for size.
I observed a very different drinking posture and behavior in 137 wild-caught, confiscated Pyxis a. arachnoides in Madagascar. The tortoises were being temporarily housed in Antananarivo after the confiscation of an illicit smuggling attempt, apparently to get them out of the country.