I remember the panic when the Eastern brown stowed away and got loose. They are one nasty snake. About 10 years ago a few browns managed to relocate to Guam. Within 6 years most of the bird population was decimated. I would die if the browns got all the poor little kiwis! They are endangered as it is. Most folks from New Zealand have never seen one. Now if I were way younger and in great shape, I'd be treking all over New Zealand and Tasmania (thalicine hunting) and Oz. I've yet to meet a person from down under that wasn't a fair dinkum bloke, choka block full of manners and helpfulness. I write to a friend in NZ on a regular basis. He lives in Turangi. We have long conversations about this and that. I had a blast razzing him about the pomms that wanted to tax sheep and cattle flatulence! He insists the Kiwi men are worse!! LOL Venomous Snakes Sneak Into New Zealand In Shipping Containers http://news.excite.com/news/r/000906/09/odd-snake-dc 9-6-00 WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand is in danger of losing its legendary snake-free status after the discovery of another live serpent, an environmental group said on Wednesday. The snake, a venomous eastern small-eyed snake common on the Australian east coast, was found in a shipping container loaded with used car batteries from Australia at Petone, near Wellington, on Sunday. It has since been killed. The previous three snakes found this year were all located in port areas. In March, a poisonous eastern brown snake was found and killed at Petone, near a storage park with containers also filled with used car batteries from Brisbane. "A snake invasion of New Zealand seems inevitable," the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand, the country's biggest conservation group, said in a statement. The society said snakes were a threat to native birds such as the flightless kiwi, which evolved in the absence of predators. "Containers are a biosecurity nightmare. They provide a safe, secure environment for the distribution of alien species around the planet," society director Kevin Smith said. The society wants the government to enforce tougher controls on containers and suspend trade with exporters found to be sending containers contaminated with pests. Most of New Zealand's pests have been introduced, one of the most damaging being possums which destroy vast tracts of native forest every year.