Earmark crackdown could help snakes spread

HONOLULU, March 30 (UPI) -- Environmental officials worry that a cut in federal funds could allow brown tree snakes easy passage from Guam to Hawaii in military cargo.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Service searches military ships and planes from Guam when they arrive in Hawaii. U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, has asked for $2 million in funding for the program.

But that request is considered an earmark, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported, a special request that new congressional leaders have promised to eliminate from the budget.

Searches of civilian cargo are funded through the Interior Department and would not be affected.

The tree snakes, natives of New Guinea and Australia, reached Guam in the 1940s or 1950s, probably as hitchhikers on ships or planes. In Guam, they have wiped out most native birds.

Hundreds of snakes have been caught on arrival in Hawaii, although no one is sure if all of them have been caught.