Giant Snakes - A Natural History
 

This is new book by John C. Murphy and Tom Crutchfield. Not only is the book highly informative and comprehensive, but it also deals with some of my personal pet peeves publicly and honestly. Finally the issue of ethics and morality are addressed openly. I have been preaching the same issues for a long time.
1. Regardless of the source (Escaped warehoused stock or released pets), the responsibity of the Florida python problem lies with the Herp community. Uninformed demand created irresponsible ownership. Giant snake are NOT for everyone!
2. Breeding many pythons is nothing more than a pyramid scheme destined to collapse, inevitably leaving someone holding the proverbial (snake) bag.
In both cases, the real victims are the snakes themselves. They wind up vilified by the general public, abandoned by frustrated owners, and treated as nothing more than product to moved for profit. We have forgotten the original reasons we were attracted to snakes in the first place.
I can not recommend this book highly enough. Even if you don’t agree with their thoughts on these issues, the information provided about the snakes themselves is invaluable. This is a “ must read” for any python enthusiast.

Crutchfield and ethics in the same paragraph makes me laugh.
However thank you for the book recommendation, I always enjoy a good herp read.

I know what you’re saying. I thought the same thing when I first saw the book for sale. But it really is worth reading. And like it or not the messages in it should seriously be addressed. The herp community is digging itself deeper and deeper holes on many fronts by not recognizing its moral duties. The herps should ALWAYS come first. Not our egos. Not our machismo. And certainly not the “Almighty Dollar”. It is no wonder the general public still views us with suspicion and doubt.
Again, I understand your statement fully, but please read the book and try to keep an open mind.

Just browsed this on Amazon. The first thing I noticed is that Crutchfield's name is misspelled on the copyright page. :(

An oddly organized book -- ostensibly about snakes that are large, but actually about pythons and boas (many of which are small). It isn't clear how much of Chapter 3 even supports the central topic; for example, an extended discussion of the genetic sex determination system of snakes doesn't serve to inform about giant snakes as such. Seems the author decided to wing this one without an editor.

Looks like there is a ton of really interesting information there, though.