Raptor Run 3K presented by the St. Augustine Alligator Farm
BENEFICIARY
A portion of the proceeds raised through this event will benefit the Eastern indigo snake through the Orianne Center for Indigo Snake Conservation (OCIC) and AZA's Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE).
The Orianne Center for Indigo Conservation (OCIC) is the sole captive propagation and release colony for the Federally Threatened Eastern indigo snake Drymarchon couperi. Established in 2010, OCIC works closely with multiple government agencies, AZA zoos, and NGOs to ensure proper management of the captive Eastern indigo snake for breeding and reintroduction. The snakes housed at OCIC have produced over 250 Eastern indigo snakes, allowing for the release of over 170 indigo snakes in Conecuh National Forest in Alabama and The Nature Conservancy’s Apalachicola Bluffs and Ravines Preserve in Florida. Raised funds are to be specifically ear-marked for disease screening in wild snakes and captive snakes slated for release.
The primary goal of the Eastern Indigo Snake SAFE Program is to contribute to the conservation of the Eastern Indigo Snake as set forth in the reintroduction strategy initiated by the Eastern Indigo Snake Reintroduction Committee (EISRC) and the Eastern Indigo Snake Recovery Plan (USFWS 2019). The reintroduction strategy is, in short, the captive breeding and rearing of indigos for the sole purpose of repatriation of the species into areas where the population is believed to be extirpated. Metrics have been calculated suggesting that a minimum of 30 two-year-old snakes be released annually for ten consecutive years within a predetermined release site in order to ensure population survivability.