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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Thieves make off with slithering booty in St. Boniface
An Emerald Tree Boa snake on exhibit at the Butantan Institute in Sao Paulo, Monday, Sept. 29, 2008. (THE ASSPCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES)
THIEVES made off with a hissing haul after busting into a St. Boniface home last week -- and now, police are hoping to find the creature-captors.
Two emerald green tree boa snakes were swiped sometime last Wednesday or Thursday when thieves broke into the home in the 200 block of Youville Street. Nobody was at home at the time of the theft.
Other items were also stolen in the herpetological heist, but none so surprising as the hefty snakes, which each measure a whopping 1.3 metres long. The pair, a male and a female, are bright lime green with big heads.
Although the snakes are certainly more, ahem, dramatic than any cute little garter, emerald tree boas are not venomous and are perfectly legal within the city of Winnipeg. They are well-known as pets, though certain breeds are considered less docile and best owned only by experienced snake owners. (The emerald tree boa's similarly named cousin, the famous boa constrictor, is banned within city limits -- but that's an entirely different species.)
Steve Rempel, a reptile breeder who also helps educate on snakes and lizards through his company, Prairie Exotics, estimated there are as few as a dozen emerald tree boas in the city. "On a scale of easy, medium or hard to care for, they'd definitely rate a hard," Rempel said.
That's in part because the boas, which live in trees in the South American rainforest, require lots of humidity and a misting or fogging system to keep their respiratory systems appropriately moist. If last week's brazen snake-nappers don't know how to properly care for the animals, that could put their health in dire risk.
Emerald tree boas can sell for anywhere from $300 to $1,500, a fact that may have played into the thieves' decision to swipe the animals -- though Rempel doesn't expect they'll have an easy time of it. "The reptile market here in Winnipeg is pretty tight-knit," he said. "We're all pretty aware and careful of who we would buy stuff from. They'd have a hard time selling this critter around here."
On Monday, Winnipeg police said there was no evidence the home was targeted because of the snakes, but the investigation is ongoing.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 1, 2012 A4
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