Three hunters caught a 17-foot, 132-pound Burmese python in the Florida Everglades in southern Miami-Dade, a record for the program aimed at curbing the proliferation of the non-native species.
The Burmese python is an invasive species that is wreaking havoc on the Everglades ecosystem.
The South Florida Water Management has initiated a program in which they pay hunters to reduce the numbers of these large snakes. Based on estimates of a python’s diet, the 743 removed as part of SFWMD’s program would have eaten tens of thousands of native animals over the next 5 to 7 years.
The snake was caught on SFWMD lands near Big Cypress National Preserve, South Florida Water Management.
Learn more about the program here and watch more here.
