Some were pets whose bodies and appetites apparently got too big for their owners to support. Most are probably descendants of released pets. Today, thousands of really big non-native snakes — we’re talking boa constrictors, anacondas and pythons — slither wild in southern Florida. And there’s nothing holding them in the Sunshine State. Which is why a report that was released today contends they pose moderate to high ecological threats to states on three U.S. coasts. Indeed, the homelands of these snakes share climatic features with large portions of the United States — territory currently inhabited by some 120 million Americans. Based on comparisons of the temperatures, rainfall and land cover found in the snakes’ native range, it’s possible that these slithering behemoths could stake claims to territory as far north as coastal Delaware and Oregon.

Scientists have traced the reappearance of cotton pests in west-central Texas to a tropical storm.

A Japanese study finds that excreted Tamiflu ends up in river water, raising concerns that birds hosting a flu virus will develop drug-resistant strains.

Toothless Asian whales find themselves being protected by fairly toothless regulations.

Study tracks European eels for the first 1,300 kilometers of their migration.

New study may help scientists improve control of invasive fire ants

Yellow crazy ants can get so annoying that birds don’t eat their normal fruits, a new study finds. (p. 13)