Photo: USFWS

Overview

The brown tree snake is a native of eastern Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and parts of Australia. Notorious for hiding in international freight and aircraft, it arrived on Guam after WW II as a stowaway on cargo ships. This snake has decimated Guam’s native forest birds, which evolved in the absence of snake predators, making them easy prey for the tree snakes. The brown tree snake is a skilled climber with a voracious appetite for eggs, chicks, and small birds. Because of it, nine of the 11 species of native forest-dwelling birds have been extirpated on Guam. Five subspecies of forest birds were driven to extinction, such as the Rufous Fantail and Guam Flycatcher. It is estimated to number up to 10,000 per square mile in some Guam forests. The snake is a serious threat to the Hawaiian Islands, and several have been intercepted at the Honolulu airport.

Description

Slender, brown snake which can grow 8 – 10 feet long. Nocturnal and arboreal, it hunts for food in all levels of the forest. Besides birds, it also eats small mammals and lizards.

Birds Affected

If released on the Hawaiian Islands, this snake could decimate the remaining endemic forest birds, such as honey creepers.

Control

An effective control method is not yet available. Preventing their further spread depends on very strict cargo checks at all times.