Monster 17'7" Python found in Everglades National Park

Record Python examined at University of Florida
Photo Courtesy: UF News

The news this week that a Burmese Python measuring 17'7" long has been found in the Everglades National Park is stunning.
Please click here to read a full report from the University of Florida.

Not only was the snake the largest of its kind ever found in Florida, it was carrying a record 87 eggs. Another python measuring 16'8" has also been found in Florida in recent years. It will be placed on display soon at the Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville.

The National Park Service reports that more than 1,800 pythons have been removed from Everglades National Park since 2002, but concede that the number removed represents only a fraction of the total number present in the vast wetland.

The snakes, park service scientists report, are havinging "devastating consequences to our ecosystem." They are feeding on native wildlife and competing with native wildlife such as alligators. In fact, the Burmese pythons even sometimes eat alligators!

In addition to trying to locate and remove the snakes, the park service is tagging some of them with transmitters so they can follow individual snakes and see where they are going and congregating. It is hoped the process will help researchers locate areas where the snakes accumulate. This will hopefully help in the capture and removal of more of the snakes.

To learn more about Burmese pythons in the Everglades, check out this outstanding site put together by the National Park Service:   http://www.nps.gov/ever/naturescience/Burmese-Pythons-in-the-Everglades.htm.