Crocodiles and snakes add to flood chaos in Queensland

[depakid]

Rain-battered residents in northeastern Australia were on alert Wednesday for snakes in their bathrooms and crocodiles in the road following repeated storms that have sent local wildlife in search of dry land or a safe haven.
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It is the Australian nightmare. Never mind the floods and the poisonous snakes and crocodiles swimming through the town centres. Pubs in some of Queensland’s inundated towns are down to their last few kegs of beer.

In the rain-lashed state, much of which has been declared a disaster zone, the army has been sent in to help with a recovery effort after more than a dozen rivers burst their banks, flooding towns and carrying some of the world’s deadliest animals into inhabited areas. The local Parks and Wildlife Service has also issued a warning: “Be wary of crocodiles and other reptiles turning up.” Some locals, however, have other worries.

“We can put up with a lot of drama, no fruit and veggies but no one wants a pub with no beer,” Donna Smith, the landlady at the Albion Hotel in the town of Normanton told local reporters.

Others emphasise that it was the wildlife that was largely on the receiving end of floods. This week a man driving on the road alongside Townsville’s Ross River, drove over what he thought was a speed-hump. But after closer inspection he discovered it was a 1.6m (5.3 ft) freshwater crocodile,

“The croc probably thought it was still in the river,” Neil Mattocks, a wildlife officer with Queensland Parks and Wildlife told The Times. “They instinctively all move in these conditions, so he had just wandered on to the road by accident.”

Mr Mattocks is now caring for the crocodile, which lost a few teeth, had a sore eye and suffered gravel rash and other minor injuries in the accident. He said that an increase in sightings of crocodiles — including another that he heard had swum underneath the foundations of a flooded Queensland home while the family watched from the balcony — and other reptiles, such as poisonous snakes, were not uncommon during Queensland’s wet season, which usually lasts until April.

“Crocodiles might move about looking for a quiet place to wait for floodwaters to recede, and snakes may swim into people’s properties,” Mr Mattocks said. “Reptiles are on the move in summer anyway, so it’s wise to be wary. All the coastal waterways in North Queensland should be considered as potential crocodile habitat.”

More: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article5660317.ece

[stevedeshazer]

1. Note to self

Self,

Avoid Australian poisonous reptiles.

Signed,

Self.

:scared:

[MrModerate]

4. Aside from the geckos, skinks, and the odd carpet python . . .

They're mostly *all* poisonous -- or so I'm told. I've only been here for a year, and in the urban area where I live you only see the aforementioned geckos around the house, but the snakes are there along most of the bike paths (which tend to follow tributaries of the Brisbane River).

Don't get me wrong, I love Australia (and I've appreciated not being in the US lately), but it's a little on the extreme side, wildlife-wise.

[depakid]

5. The red bellied blacks supposedly will make you damn sick- but generally don't kill you

And as an added bonus- they eat the browns and the tigers- which surely will.



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[MrModerate]

2. I read in the Courier-Mail ("It's in the C-M so it's got to be true") . . .

That 60% of the State is under water -- an area roughly the size of Spain and France put together. This at the same time that down south of Brisbane, where I am, they're having an incredible heat wave (and it's supposed to be cooler down there).

Climate change, anyone?

[depakid]

3. Brisbane's not getting the cyclones

ABC has a little more on the wildlife:

Crocodiles feared to be roaming floodwaters in northeastern Australia

"Crocodiles might move about looking for a quiet place to wait for floodwaters to recede and snakes may swim into peoples' properties," Environmental Protection Agency project officer Brian Wright said after the late January floods.

David Harkin was preparing Wednesday to evacuate after watching floods wash through his two-level home. He said he's seen several snakes around his house since the latest storm hit Sunday. "That's why I keep the broom here (at the front door) to chase the snakes away," he told reporters.

Townsville Wildlife Carers volunteer Lana Allcroft said the service had been overwhelmed with injured and displaced animals since the floods began.

"A lady rang up this morning and said she had a snake in her bathroom. I said, 'Well, I've got a crocodile in mine,'" Allcroft told the newspaper. "We've had wallabies, curlews, snakes and flying foxes, and that's just this morning."

After weeks of storms that have submerged parts of Queensland, the area was battered again Sunday when a tropical storm landed. More rain is forecast this week, including a possible cyclone. Deputy Premier Paul Lucas, who visited Ingham on Wednesday, said he didn't believe the ground could cope with more rain. "It's like pouring water over a wet towel," Lucas said.

<snip>

Some coastal areas are completely cut off by flooding and authorities fear the stagnant water could worsen an outbreak of dengue fever.

More: http://abcnews.go.com/International/WireStory?id=6801928&page=2
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The Dengue outbreaks have gotten worse in the Cairns and Townsville area- despite extensive public health efforts (including fines for property owners). Two strains are now involved- likely from indonesia and southeast asia, which is exceptionally bad news, becasue the first infection- while no fun at all, usually isn't fatal.

A second infection can turn into hemorragic fevor- killing the patient despite treatment.

Yep- climate change = emerging diseases.