COURTESY PHOTO
A Mexican fishing bat, above, found Friday morning at Pier 11 by state Department of Transportation personnel, tested negative for rabies.
|
|
Snake and bat turn up in isles
Two illegal animals were found over the Thanksgiving weekend in two separate incidents on Oahu and Maui.
On Friday a small bat was spotted by personnel in the Redevelopment Office of the state Department of Transportation on the second-floor office at Pier 11 of Aloha Tower Marketplace. The windows in that office are always left open, said Janelle Saneishi, spokeswoman of the Department of Agriculture.
Officials said the bat appeared to be in a weakened state. It was captured in a trash bag and delivered to the Plant Quarantine Branch of the Hawaii Department of Agriculture.
Experts at the Honolulu Zoo and on the mainland identified it as a Mexican fishing bat that is not native to the islands.
The bat was put to death and tested for rabies, Saneishi said. Results were negative.
The Mexican fishing bat is native to the islands and coastal areas of the Sea of Cortez and the west-central coast of the Baja peninsula in California. State agriculture officials said it feeds on marine crustaceans and fish. They are generally seen flying over lagoons looking for small fish to consume.
Inspectors indicated that a Panamanian ship, the Sasangua, arrived from Mexico to Pier 11 early Thursday and departed that afternoon for Japan. Officials said the bat might have traveled aboard the ship.
COURTESY PHOTO
A 21-inch red-tailed boa constrictor was found in a shoe box at the Maui Humane Society.
|
|
On Maui a worker at the Maui Humane Society found a 21-inch red-tailed boa constrictor last Thursday in an unattended shoe box in one of the holding kennels.
Officials said the area is accessible to the public 24 hours a day, and it is unknown who left the box.
Officials said the snake appeared to be in a weakened state and died over the weekend.
Boa constrictors are nonvenomous and native to Central and South America. They can grow up to 12 feet in length and have a normal diet of small mammals such as mice and rats.
Snakes have no natural predators in Hawaii and pose a serious threat to Hawaii's environment, the public and small pets. Many species also prey on birds and their eggs, increasing the threat to endangered native birds.
Those who have illegal animals are encouraged to turn them in under the state's amnesty program, which provides immunity from prosecution.
Illegal animals may be turned into any office of the Hawaii Department of Agriculture, Honolulu Zoo or any humane society. No questions will be asked and no fines will be assessed.
Anyone with information on illegal animals should call the state's toll-free pest hot line at 643-PEST (7378).