burm mini-series on natgeo

[dangles]

NAT GEO WILD’S NEW SERIES PYTHON HUNTERS

FOLLOWS THE BATTLE AGAINST AN INCREASING GIANT SNAKE POPULATION

Three Fearless Experts Brave the Swamps and Poisonous Inhabitants of the Everglades to Track and Study Predatory Burmese Pythons

Python Hunters Premieres Monday, July 12, 2010, at 10 p.m. ET/PT

On Nat Geo WILD

(WASHINGTON, D.C. — JULY 7, 2010) One of the largest snake species on earth has invaded the Florida Everglades. They weigh up to 200 pounds and can reach 23 feet in length. Some are abandoned pets, others are believed to have escaped en masse after Hurricane Andrew ripped through the region — and they’re reproducing new generations of wild giants. A team of three experts is tackling the Herculean task of hunting down and studying the increasing Burmese python population in Florida.

Python Hunters, premiering Monday, July 12, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Nat Geo WILD, follows real-life snake hunters herpetologist Shawn Heflick, Greg Graziani, and Michael Cole as they comb the Florida Everglades for Burmese pythons. Cheating death on a daily basis, the trio wades through alligator- and snake-infested water and navigates the deepest recesses of this massive swamp. Armed only with snake hooks, specimen bags, off-road vehicles and their wits, the team captures pythons in an ongoing effort to reduce the threat against local residents and endangered native wildlife.

Trekking deep through the Everglades, Sean, the biologist, provides insight into reptile conservation; Greg, the “muscle,” brings his decades of experience handling pythons; and Mike, the “tracker,” provides his keen hunter eyesight to spot snakes in the wild. We’ll accompany the three as they make night hunts, hike through caves and find both dead and living pythons. And we’ll learn more about the different ways to capture a python, how to detect their smell and awareness of their habitat.

Premiere episodes include:

Python Hunters: The Perfect Storm
Monday, July 12, 2010, at 10 PM ET/PT
With an increasing number of Burmese pythons inhabiting Florida, the Python Hunters delve deep into how the snakes came to thrive in the Everglades. One reason for the population overload is irresponsible pet owners releasing them into the wild, but Mike believes that a greenhouse containing hundreds of Burmese pythons was destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in 1992, causing a surge in the wild population. Regardless of how this species came to inhabit the Everglades, Sean, Greg and Mike are determined to capture one of the largest snakes on earth. They embark on a night hunt where they use their snake hooks to catch a feisty Burmese python. They explain the implications and differences between a wild python and a released pet. And, we’ll see Mike, who has hunted many species in the past, capture a python for the first time in the season. We’ll ride along with these expert hunters as they investigate how these creatures began to roam the Everglades.

Python Hunters: The Big Freeze
Monday, July 19, 2010, at 10 PM ET/PT
A cold front has hit Florida, and frigid temperatures are killing thousands of native and nonindigenous species. The team discovers numerous dead pythons and one injured python that they take back to Greg’s facility, used to house reptiles or perform further study. The team later heads deep into the cold Everglades to continue the hunt. This time is trickier than ever, as they tread through remote tree islands and limestone caves, braving alligators, venomous snakes and the cold in search of the wild creatures.

Python Hunters: Everglades Under Siege
Monday, July 26, 2010, at 10 PM ET/PT
Not only are Sean, Greg and Mike experts at catching Burmese pythons, but their goal is to investigate the species’ habitat further. In this episode, the team performs an autopsy on a Burmese python killed by cold weather to discover more about the animal and see whether or not it was a healthy predator. Later, the hunters head to the edge of a saw grass marsh to explore the knee-deep waters in search of pythons.

Python Hunters is produced by Cineflix International media, Ltd for Nat Geo WILD. For Cineflix, series producer is Kip Spidell, producer is Simon Lloyd, director is Harald Bachmann. For Nat Geo WILD, executive producer is Michael Welsh, senior vice president, development and production, is Geoff Daniels.

For more information, visit www.natgeowild.com.

# # #

NAT GEO WILD
For more than 30 years, National Geographic has been the leader in wildlife programming. Now the animal kingdom is taking center stage on a brand-new network, Nat Geo WILD. Offering intimate encounters with nature’s ferocious fighters and gentle creatures of land, sea and air, Nat Geo WILD and Nat Geo WILD HD will draw upon the cutting-edge work of the many explorers, filmmakers and scientists who have long-standing relationships with the National Geographic Society. Nat Geo WILD is a joint venture between Fox Cable Networks (FCN) and National Geographic Ventures (NGV) ― the same partnership behind the National Geographic Channel (NGC), which launched January 2001 and has since been one the most successful new networks on the landscape. Nat Geo WILD launched globally more than three years ago and is the fastest growing channel among the international portfolio of National Geographic networks.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Russell Howard, Nat Geo WILD / National Geographic Channel, 202-912-6652, RHoward@natgeotv.com
Chris Albert, Nat Geo WILD / National Geographic Channel, 202-912-6526, CAlbert@natgeotv.com
TV: Dara Klatt, 202-912-6720, Dklatt@natgeotv.com
Radio: Johanna Ramos Boyer, 703-646-5137, Johanna@jrbcomm.com
Print: Erin Griffin, 202-912-6632, Egriffin@natgeotv.com
Digital: Minjae Ormes, 917-539-7646, minjae@minjaeormes.com
Photos: Doan Nguyen, 202-912-6708, donguyen@ngs.org

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[dangles]

we'll have to see how the editors and producers decide to spin this in the editing phase (i'm sure they will to SOME degree), but the three guys mentioned are much more sympathetic to our side than many others on TV...

Heflick was actually the president of the central florida herp society for a while.

we'll have to see how it turns out!

[jeffreyr]

I will have to record it at my parents house and watch it later.

[Jonathan Brady]

These guys aren't sympathetic to our side, they ARE our side!

Like you mentioned Chris, Shawn was the president of the CFHS (I think he's currently the vice-president under Jim Peters). Greg Graziani is a HUGE name in the herp industry. And Michael Cole is also known in the herp industry and happens to be the guy who put together that nationally recognized donation campaign to bring to justice whoever was releasing Burms in Tampa!

I think these 3 guys CAN definitely do justice to the situation. They'll speak based in facts, and not hysteria. But, as was mentioned, the cutting room floor can REALLY twist things.

It's going to be interesting to see if anything more comes of this series besides the 3 shows because of the cold snap. I don't know if there will be enough pythons to "hunt" to keep the camera busy - ya know?

I've got my DVR set and I'm eager to see the results.

jb

[boarama]

I watched the show, and I thought it was pretty good. And as for the three guys involved, you couldn't ask for anybody better. Good job.

[dangles]

so i finally got around to watching the first episode the other day.

i was SO thankful that it was FAIR and BALANCED! TRULY fair and balanced, too! not like that news agency that claims to be... LOL!

anyway, i REALLY hope they decide to re-air it on the regular natgeo channel so more people get a chance to see it!

[oregonboas]

I watched it as well and have the other episodes scheduled to record on the DVR. I was very impressed, it has been the first program that gives true and accurate information such as how actually rare it is to find on of the 14 footers in the wild of the Everglades. The other programs lead the normal viewer to think that there are a boat load of 20 foot pythons stalking the grass out there. I was also very please to see the real reason for the Burm poulation in the Glades getting some air time.

Good for them.