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Office
of News and Information
June 2, 2003 |
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Dr. Jim Koukl, associate professor of biology,
says there’s no reason to be concerned
about poisonous snakes in Harvey Lake. The media comments occurred during the coverage of the police investigation of a possible suicide attempt by Michael Tabb near the lake, which the media portrayed as “swarming with water moccasins” which slowed the investigation. “Even though I am not a ‘snake expert,’ I do know just a little about snake habitats and how to identify the more common snakes,” Koukl said. “I fear the publicity will give the wrong impression of what is reality at our lakes at this University. First of all the lakes are not infested. There are a number of water snakes called Diamond Back water snakes and are very common in lakes and ponds. They can look similar to a cottonmouth from a distance.” Dr. Neil Ford, professor of biology and a nationally recognized herpetologist, and other biology faculty have spent 20 years working in and around the lakes and have never seen a moccasin, Koukl added. “The habitat is too sterile. If there were water moccasins around these lakes, one would see them basking in the sun along the shoreline, not in the water but right on the edge out of the water,” said Koukl. He hopes that instead of becoming alarmed by media reports concerned individuals would consult Ford for accurate information. “Let’s
be educated about the creatures we live with
and not create a panic that the UT Tyler campus
is infested with poison snakes,” he said. Contact person: Emily Battle, (903) 565-5604
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