A 140-pound female python measuring 17 feet in length was captured in the Florida Everglades the largest snake ever to be caught at Big Cypress National Preserve.
Big Cypress said four people holding the snake from its head to its tail, that the python was euthanized and its 73 developing eggs were destroyed.
‘She is the largest python ever removed from Big Cypress National Preserve and she was caught because of research and a new approach to finding pythons.
In order to track down female pythons, researchers outfit male pythons with radio transmitters.
The males then lead researchers to breeding grounds, where they usually find females.
‘All of the python work at Big Cypress is focused on controlling this invasive species, which poses significant threats to native wildlife,’ the preserve said.
The pythons, which can grow to more than 20 feet in their native habitat in South east Asia, are one of the most problematic invaders of Florida’s sprawling Everglades wetlands.
They eat indigenous species and their food sources, fueling concerns that the predator snakes will fundamentally change the ecosystem.
In December, a huge 18-foot-long python weighing 150 pounds was caught roaming in the Everglades.
Hunter John Hammond caught the snake, which was subsequently euthanized, as part of the Python Elimination Program.
The wildlife trapper took 45 minutes to snare the beast after letting it tire itself out before dragging it to his truck.
It is said to be the largest snake that has been caught since the program started.
Python hunters are said to have caught more than 1,850 of the snakes in the area after they started to wreak havoc on Florida’s ecosystem.
They were brought to the state in the 1970s as pets and can grow up to 20 feet long.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission allows for Burmese pythons to be killed without a permit or hunting license.
Music: "Big Mojo" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Source: Big Cypress National Preserve , Daily Mail, NyDailyNews
Comments
Post a Comment