POWERGRAMS

22 Rattlesnakes beware. The "forest ruler" is making a comeback in Alabama. The eastern indigo looks ferocious, but is not a poisonous snake; rather, it eats them. North America's longest snake once thrived in the Heart of Dixie, up until Harry Truman became president. But it has largely gone unseen since the 1950s. Most wildlife experts agree the black-skinned snake's demise was primarily caused by the loss of its habitat due to changing forestry practices and fire suppression in open-canopy forests (where treetops don't touch). Loss of fire in longleaf pine forests means less habitat for gopher tortoises and fewer of their burrows, where the indigo lives in winter. In an ironic twist, the indigo also indirectly fell prey to one of its favorite dishes, the eastern diamondback rattlesnake. Snake hunters would gas the burrows to drive out the rattler, but in the process, killed the indigo. In 2009, the practice of gassing gopher burrows and other wildlife dens became illegal. Now, thanks to multiple efforts to restore longleaf pine forests to Alabama, aggressive plans are underway to reintroduce the indigo to its historical habitat. In Alabama, the snake's stomping grounds are the six southernmost counties: Mobile, Baldwin, Escambia, Covington, Geneva and Houston. The snake's biological name is "Drymarchon," translated "forest ruler." They also eat nonpoisonous snakes, and "just about any animal that can be grabbed and swallowed," says Mark Sasser, nongame coordinator of the Alabama Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries within the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR). "Being at the top of its food chain, a healthy population of eastern indigo snakes in a longleaf pine forest setting is an indication of an ecologically functional forest," Sasser said. "To return the eastern indigo to the south Alabama landscape is to restore a piece of natural history of the state." While Alabama Power is not actively involved with the indigo project, the company is heavily invested in replenishing longleaf pine. Some 26,000 acres have been restored – and 6,500 additional acres planted – with monies contributed in a joint effort of Southern Company, Alabama Power and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Far north of the indigo's range, Alabama Power conducts controlled burning, clearing and thinning of hardwoods and pines to enhance longleaf pine forests on 1,200 acres of company land on Lake Mitchell. The results have benefited the state's second-largest population of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker, which lives in the longleaf forest around Lake Mitchell. "Longleaf pine restoration across the Southeast helps promote the proliferation of many species of animals and plants dependent upon this unique and diverse ecosystem," said biologist Jeff Baker, an Environmental Affairs specialist with Alabama Power. This past July, ADCNR released 31 indigos in the Conecuh National Forest, the southernmost national forest in Alabama, comprised of 84,000 acres between Andalusia and the Florida line. As of 2015, 107 indigos have been released in Conecuh, with 200 more snakes planned for release in the next few years. Reintroduction efforts started in 2006 when ADCNR partnered with Auburn University zoologists to perform initial field research on the indigo's status. Those efforts mushroomed to involve the Georgia Department of Natural Resources providing pregnant female indigos from the wild and Zoo Atlanta providing a place for hatchlings to grow for one year before release in Conecuh. Since the first release of 17 juvenile indigos in 2010, all 107 reintroduced snakes have been equipped with transmitters, which allow biologists to track the indigos. The findings have been encouraging. "Recaptured animals grew considerably," Sasser said. They behaved normally as they would in the wild, demonstrating they had not lost their intrinsic survival behavior after being raised in captivity. As for the future of the indigo in Alabama, Sasser said the plan is to get a baseline from which to evaluate how the snake is faring in Conecuh. "Monitoring of the release area will continue for the foreseeable future," Sasser said, "with the hope of obtaining sufficient recaptures to generate meaningful population estimates. This continued monitoring over the next few years will help assess whether indigo snakes have formed a viable and self-sustaining population." Rattlesnakes, beware. Veterinarians sedate snake prior to surgical implant of transmitter (right).

• Cover