Wildlife officers handle dangerous cross-border creatures

Canadian wildlife legislation aims to protect species in Canada, as well as conserve threatened or potentially threatened species internationally. Environment Canada wildlife officers enforce wildlife legislation every day across the country. Their activities regularly involve handling unusual species of plants and animals, and can often involve tasks such as identifying orchids or reptile skins, giving a presentation on non-toxic shot for migratory bird hunting, organizing the dismantling of a poaching network or analyzing data on the cactus trade.

Slithery surprise

In 2005, a prominent case involved a rare type of snake that inadvertently made its way to Canada from the Middle East. A Palestine viper, an extremely poisonous snake, was found in a six-metre container of watermelon seeds transported from Israel. Upon discovery of the snake, Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers immediately contacted the Atlantic Regional Office of Environment Canada's Wildlife Enforcement Directorate, which regulates wildlife imports under the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act.

Wildlife enforcement officers receive extensive training on the handling of poisonous reptiles and other dangerous animals. According to wildlife enforcement game officer Les Sampson, various types of animals arrive in shipping containers on a fairly regular basis, but this was the first time such a dangerous animal was found.

This viper had a venom yield of approximately 100 mg; 15 to 20 mg is considered a lethal dose.

"There was a great risk to the officers and the contractors who discovered the snake," Mr. Sampson said, adding that luckily, it was a cold evening when the snake was found, so it was lethargic and had very little energy to strike.

Mr. Sampson said that a number of things could have happened if the officers or contractors had been bitten. The worse case scenario would have been a lethal dose injected directly into a vein – an individual could have died in as little as five to 10 minutes.

Prior to the Palestine viper, the last time a poisonous snake was discovered in Atlantic Canada was in 2003, when a Mangrove snake was brought into the country by a pet store. The Atlantic Regional Office of the Wildlife Enforcement Directorate and Nova Scotia game officers arranged for the store to send the snake back to the supplier, as it was shipped in error.

Mr. Sampson said that whether or not an animal will be turned over to the care of a zoo is done on a case-by-case basis and that returning the animal to its country of origin is another option. In the case of the Palestine viper, the snake was humanely euthanized for health and safety reasons.