Tag: Louisiana pine snake

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Frozen Snake Semen Yields Global Breakthrough at Memphis Zoo

Credit: Memphis Zoo

Scientists at the Memphis Zoo have — for the first time in the world — successfully produced the first reptile offspring using frozen semen and artificial insemination. 

The team achieved the feat through its work to preserve the Louisiana pinesnake. The Memphis Zoo’s Science team is led by Dr. Steve Reichling, Beth Roberts, and previous post-doctoral scientist Dr. Mark Sandfoss. The team collected, froze, and later thawed semen, which was then used to successfully inseminate a female Louisiana pinesnake. 

Credit: Memphis Zoo

“Today, the future of endangered reptiles got a little brighter,” Reichling said.

Reptiles are often overlooked in such breeding methods, the zoo said in a news release. The concept of a “frozen zoo” has primarily focused on mammals, birds, and amphibians. The zoo’s method used in snakes demonstrated its potential in reptile conservation worldwide, it said.   

“The emergence of these three hatchlings summed up five years of reproductive research and 30 years of Memphis Zoo’s use of cutting-edge science and dedication to save the Louisiana pinesnake from extinction,” said Roberts, Senior Reproductive Scientist at Memphis Zoo.

Testing at Auburn University confirmed that the offspring were sired by the male snake donor. 

“We see this success as a huge step forward to enable future efforts to improve the genetic health of this species and other threatened reptile species,” said Dr. Tonia Schwartz, Associate Professor in Auburn’s Department of Biological Sciences. 

Credit: Memphis Zoo

The Louisiana pinesnake is one of the rarest snakes in North America. Habitat loss continues to threaten their survival. So, researchers said the ability to use frozen semen offers new hope for maintaining genetic diversity in the species and ensuring its long-term survival. The zoo team plans to continue its work in reptile conservation, building on its research, and collaborating with other institutions worldwide.

Credit: Memphis Zoo

 “Memphis Zoo is setting an example for the global community,” said Sandfoss, who spearheaded the research. “We’ve shown that it’s possible to use cryopreserved genetic material to aid in the recovery of an endangered species, paving the way for similar efforts with other reptile species in the future.” 

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Memphis Zoo Working to Save Endangered Snake

Credit: Memphis Zoo

A team of researchers from the Memphis Zoo has spent the past 11 years working to save the endangered Louisiana pine snake. Last week, in conjunction with Earth Day, the team released 50 juvenile snakes into the Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana.

In 2010, Dr. Steve Reichling, research director, and his team at the Memphis Zoo began working to revive the Louisiana pine snake and repopulate the species in its natural habitat. Through captive breeding programs that involved artificial insemination, as well as natural breeding, the research team produced hundreds of fertile eggs which they have raised and prepped to be released back in the wild.

On Earth Day, April 22nd, the Memphis Zoo research team was joined by partners on the project from Fort Worth Zoo, Alexandria Zoo, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and U.S. Forest Service to release 50 juvenile pine snakes into their indigenous habitat safely into stump holes and pocket gopher tunnels. The research team also discovered that snakes from previous releases have begun breeding naturally in the wild. It’s an important discovery, say zoo officials, one that shows the captive-bred snakes have successfully adapted to the area and will hopefully recover from its endangered status.

The Louisiana Pine Snake is the rarest snake in North America, native to the longleaf pine forests of Louisiana and Texas. They are non-venomous, with distinctive tan bodies patterned with blackish-brown splotches down their back. Their main prey source is the pocket gopher, which is prevalent in their ecosystem. They tend to live in the holes of pocket gophers and spend more than half their lives below ground.

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Memphis Zoo Plans to Save Rare Louisiana Pine Snake

The Memphis Zoo will lead conservation efforts to save the Louisiana pine snake — the rarest snake in the United States. Longleaf pine forests, the pine snake’s natural habitat, have been destroyed by urbanization, logging, and cultivation. Human alteration has pushed the species to near extinction, but the Memphis Zoo has a plan to save them. — Joshua Cannon

Flyer: How many pine snakes will the zoo have?
Matt Thompson: We will initially have approximately 20 snakes under our care beginning in late fall or early winter. The remaining snakes that are in 21 different zoos across the country will be distributed to three other locations: Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, Louisiana; Fort Worth Zoo in Fort Worth, Texas; and Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin, Texas.

Will the snakes be housed in an existing location or will one be built?
A Louisiana pine snake research facility will be built on zoo grounds near the giraffe barn, courtesy of funds from the U.S. Forest Service Catahoula District. The building, contracted by Mayer Construction Co. Inc., will cost just under $150,000 and will be pretty cut and dry — no fancy features since it will not be open to the public. It will include strong lights that will mimic sunlight and wall-to-wall cages. We hope to have it completed by mid-September.

What method will the zoo use to breed the snakes?
While there are various methods for breeding different types of snakes, the pine snake is bred using the standard practice for North American colubrids — non-venomous, egg-laying snakes. In the late fall/early winter, we lower their temperature in a controlled setting, essentially hibernating them. Once spring rolls around and hibernation ends, the snakes are paired together to facilitate breeding.

What led the pine snakes to near extinction?
The population of the Louisiana pine snake has dwindled due in part to the loss of its habitat, longleaf pine forests. The lush forests once stretched across the Southeast from East Texas to the Atlantic coastline, covering an estimated 90 million acres until their decline began 150 years ago.

Because the trees were so abundant many years ago, settlers saw them as an inexhaustible resource, clearing the longleaf pine forests to make way for human development and agriculture, as well as using the high-quality lumber to build ships and railroads. Now, the trees can only be found in patches throughout those regions.

Once settlers discovered the vast loss of the trees, they replaced them with fast-growing pines that would produce economic benefits much more quickly than their predecessors. However, replacing the longleaf pines caused the areas the snakes once inhabited to no longer be a good fit for the species to thrive.

How many pine snakes are left?
There are 108 Louisiana pine snakes held in captivity in the United States. They’re also found in the wild but sparingly to say the least. The snake is the rarest in North America with fewer than 250 specimens that have been found in the wild.

When did the zoo begin breeding pine snakes, and how many have been successfully re-entered into the wild?
The Memphis Zoo began breeding Louisiana pine snakes in 2010. Over the last six years, we have released 50 pine snakes into the wild at an experimental site in Grant Parish, Louisiana, on the Catahoula District of Kisatchie National Forest. Now that this conservation effort is being kicked up a notch, we’re looking forward to increasing that number exponentially over the next few years. We estimate that each of the four conservation sites will produce about 100 snakes annually.