Python on trail – Courtesy: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
500 pounds of snakes were discovered by a team of trackers in a swamp in South Florida last month, according to the Miami Herald.
A 7-foot-wide mound containing 11 pythons was found by officials on public land near Naples on February 21, according to the article.
During the breeding season, the team keeps a tight eye on the snakes and uses telemetry and active searching to get rid of invasive species before the females can lay eggs.
According to its website, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida is dedicated to studying the behavior and ecological impact of crucial invasive species, as well as removing them from the area.
The group has removed more than 34,000 pounds of python from the area since 2013.
“For 10 years, we’ve been catching and putting them [Burmese pythons] down humanely. You can’t put them in zoos and send them back to Southeast Asia. Invasive species management doesn’t end with rainbows and kittens,” conservancy biologist Ian Bartoszek said. “These are remarkable creatures, here through no fault of their own. They are impressive animals, good at what they do.”
The Burmese python is one of the biggest snakes in the world, reaching a maximum length of 19 feet. Through the pet trade, hundreds of these snakes were transported from their natural environment in Southeast Asia to Florida in the 1970s.
The 90 percent decrease in mammal populations in the Everglades is attributed to these pythons, according to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, who are now established predators in the area.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
