All articles tagged with #burmese pythons
Nearly 300 Burmese pythons were removed during the 2025 Florida Python Challenge, setting a record with 294 snakes caught by 934 participants from 30 states and Canada, highlighting ongoing efforts to control invasive species threatening Florida's ecosystems.
Scientists discovered specialized intestinal cells in Burmese pythons that process calcium from bones, helping them digest whole prey and manage calcium absorption, a finding that could have broader implications for understanding bone digestion in other animals.
Wildlife conservators in southwest Florida found 11 Burmese pythons, totaling 500 pounds, in three separate "mating balls," marking a record daily capture for the area. The invasive species, originally from Southeast Asia, has become an established apex predator in the Greater Everglades ecosystem, leading to a 90% decline in native mammal populations. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida has been actively researching and removing these pythons, with over 1,300 snakes weighing more than 35,000 pounds removed to date.
Amy Siewe, a former real estate agent, has become a full-time guide teaching people how to find and euthanize invasive Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades. Florida has organized state-sponsored competitions to raise awareness and reward hunters who catch and humanely kill the most pythons. The program pays contractors to hunt pythons throughout the year, but some hunters like Siewe have struck out on their own. Pythons have decimated native wildlife since they were introduced as exotic pets, and efforts to eliminate them have been largely unsuccessful. Hunting pythons is a challenging and time-consuming task, but every python removed helps save the lives of native animals.
Scientists are battling an invasion of Burmese pythons in Florida's Everglades, which have decimated the mammal community and altered other ecosystem processes. The snakes have eaten their way through the state's beloved River of Grass, and eradication seems impossible. The US Geological Survey's Jacquelyn Guzy says population size estimates are some of the most important missing pieces as far as successful suppression of the invasion. The snakes are cryptic and secretive, and they inhabit vast wilderness areas of southern Florida, making them difficult to find.
Scientists are battling Burmese pythons that have invaded the Everglades and are eating their way through Florida's wildlife. The snakes have caused a rearrangement and simplification of the mammal community, which has begun to alter other ecosystem processes. The snakes are extremely cryptic and secretive, and they are inherently difficult to find, making developing control tools tough. The South Florida Water Management District runs an annual python hunt, but no one removal method looks more promising than others. Genetic biocontrol tools represent exciting possibilities that are actively being explored.
Burmese pythons in Florida are killing off the predators that would normally keep the rat population in check, leading to an increase in rodents in parts of the Everglades. While this may be good news for cotton rats, it poses a serious danger to humans as rats can carry diseases that can infect people.
Burmese pythons, an invasive species in Florida, are not preying on cotton rats, allowing the rodent population to thrive and dominate parts of the Florida Everglades. The decline of predators like foxes, due to python invasions, has led to an increase in cotton rats and other rodents. However, this could pose a danger to humans as cotton rats carry diseases that can infect humans. The python infestation has thrown Florida's delicate ecosystems off balance and led to severe declines in mammalian populations.
Burmese pythons in Florida's Everglades have wiped out native populations of larger mammals, leaving an opening for cotton rats to dominate the ecosystem. The rise in rodents could further disrupt the already fragile ecosystem and increase the risk of disease to humans. Cotton rats are reservoirs for viruses that can pass to humans, including the Everglades virus (EVEV) and hantaviruses. Diseases carried by the rats can then be passed through mosquito bites to humans.