The Antiguan Racer Snake

This is probably one of the world's rarest snakes. Antiguan racers number only about a hundred. Mongooses imported to Antigua around 1900 to control rats instead began wiping out the snakes! Five years ago, researchers discovered a few racers on an offshore island - but they also found rats, shipboard stowaways, that were eating the harmless snakes. Fauna and Flora International and other groups have eradicated the rats, and the racers are making a comeback.

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