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Auburn University scientists release indigo snakes into Conecuh National Forest
Scientists from the Auburn University Museum of Natural History and the Natural Heritage Program released nine threatened indigo snakes into Conecuh National Forest in south Alabama on July 24. The snakes were released as part of an on-going reintroudction project coordinated by Auburn University to reestablish the eastern indigo snake in its native habitat in south Alabama.
Before reintroduction efforts began in 2011, there had been no confirmed sightings of the Eastern indigo snake in the wild in Alabama since the mid-1950s.
The eastern indigo snake is non-venomous and has a lustrous, glossy, iridescent blue-black coloring of the head and body. It is the longest snake in North America and may reach a size of 8.5 ft. and a weight of 11 lbs. for males, and 6.5 ft. and 6.5 lbs. for females.
The harmless eastern indigo snake likes to eat copperheads. The copperhead is a venomous snake responsible for more snake bites in the Southeastern United States than any other snake. Copperhead observations are increasing, and, in south Alabama, population growth of the copperhead could be due to the absence of the once-prevalent eastern indigo snake.
The release was coordinated by Auburn University and represents a collaboration among the following partners: Auburn University; Alabama Natural Heritage Program, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; Central Florida Zoo’s Orianne Center for Indigo Conservation; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; U.S. Forest Service.
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Alumnus Spotlight: Dr. Michael Davis Fox
Dr. Michael Fox, pre-med biology ’83, is the medical director of Jacksonville Center for Reproductive Medicine in Jacksonville, Fla.
He received his medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1987, completed a yearlong internship in internal medicine at the University of South Alabama, then transferred to the University of Mississippi for an obstetrics and gynecology residency. He was awarded a reproductive endocrinology fellowship at the University of Kentucky in Lexington.
But before journeying across the Southeast to launch his career in medicine, Fox chose to begin his undergraduate studies at Auburn University; a decision, he says, that came easy.
“I was looking at different schools, and my mother wanted me to check out Auburn,” said Fox. “I remember running a stoplight and stop sign in the same day looking at all the pretty Auburn girls. I made my choice right then!
To read the full story, click here.
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COSAM mourns the loss of Sam Simmons
Longtime COSAM supporter and alumnus William Samuel Simmons was born on March 4, 1936, in Monroeville, Ala., and passed away July 10, 2015.
Sam married his high school sweetheart, Yvette Morgan Simmons, in Opelika, Ala., in 1958. A scientist by nature and by training, Sam spent his life in academics.
He received a bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1958 and a doctorate in chemical engineering in 1969, both from Auburn, followed by postdoctoral work in pharmacology with Pennsylvania State University.
To read the full story, click here.
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