Invasive Burmese Python Impossible to Wipe Out of Florida, US Experts Say

Scientists have concluded that it will probably be impossible to eradicate the invasive species in the southern part of the state as a result of the expanding Burmese python population in Florida and throughout the Everglades National Park and its numerous unknowns. When it comes to invasive species, Burmese pythons in southern Florida are one of the toughest management problems worldwide.

Invasive Species Burmese Pythons

Even though Burmese pythons were found in the Everglades as early as 1979, it wasn't until the late 1990s and early 2000s that the snake was acknowledged as an established invasive species in the vicinity of the national park due to the detection of a reproducing population.

The problem began with just a few snakes released into the wild after being a part of the exotic pet trade, and it has since spread to the counties of Broward and Palm Beach and is still spreading northward to places like Lake Okeechobee and Fort Myers.

While acknowledging that little is known about how frequently pythons reproduce in their new environment, how long they live, and how large the population has grown, the new paper by the US Geological Survey (USGS) published this year examines findings from more than 250 research programs that touch on methods that the reptile invasion could be slowed.

Pythons and Small Mammals

According to WUSF Media, the largest python ever seen in Florida was close to 19 feet long, weighed 214 pounds, and was carrying 122 eggs.

Although larger snakes can carry up to 79-87 eggs, the average clutch size of pythons in Florida is between 11 and 84 eggs.

To start tracking the locations and movement patterns of pythons, researchers in Florida started equipping small mammals, such as possums and raccoons, with GPS tracking devices.

After five months of investigation, a breakthrough occurred when one of the possum collars suddenly stopped moving before restarting a few hours later. The lack of movement, they discovered, caused a mortality signal, but when the small mammal started moving again, the team realized it had been eaten by a snake.

As the snake moved in and out of the maze-like caves in Key Largo, it took researchers about a month to locate the tracker. When they did, they discovered a 12-foot-long female python, weighing at least 66 pounds, that was stuffed with egg follicles.

Conceding to the Impossible Eradication

The 2022 Florida Python Challenge, another annual culling, is held in October by the state. 231 snakes were put down in the challenge the previous year.

However, strategies like the yearly challenge will hardly make a dent in the Burmese python population explosion in southern Florida.

Although many different methods have been used to capture pythons throughout southern Florida, the paper's conclusion noted that many of these tools have not undergone thorough evaluation, largely due to the challenge of python detection. Burmese pythons in southern Florida are probably impossible to completely eradicate.

Even at local scales, controlling the python population will require careful coordination between researchers and funding, land managers, public outreach, the use of a variety of complementary tools, and a thorough assessment of these tools, New York Post reports.