OIA PRESS RELEASE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION Guam Receives $250,000 from Office of Insular Affairs for Brown Treesnake Control and Research(WASHINGTON, D.C., January 31, 2005) Guam will receive a grant in the amount of $250,000 from the Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs to help the island in its efforts to combat the ubiquitous brown treesnake, it was announced today. The grant will provide funding that will support the maintenance of 750 brown treesnake traps within the munitions storage area, and will provide continued research on interdiction methods and procedures. "Guam’s efforts at brown treesnake control are becoming more promising with the creation of some relatively snake free areas," said Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior David B. Cohen. "The brown treesnake traps currently in use are not technically complicated, but they have been quite effective. This grant will help to continue the joint effort of the Air Force and the Government of Guam within the munitions storage area, an area that is now being used for the reintroduction of some native birds." The grant will be funded through the Office of Insular Affairs Brown Treesnake Control Program, which is designed to help control the brown tree snake population on Guam and prevent its spread to the CNMI, the State of Hawaii, the mainland United States and elsewhere. The brown treesnake was likely introduced to the island of Guam as a passive stowaway in a military cargo ship moving material after World War II. The brown tree snake has no natural predators on Guam, and has completely eliminated the populations of many species of birds and small mammals on Guam. |