2 Burmese Pythons, Eggs, Hatchlings Found In South FL Preserve: FWC

SOUTH FLORIDA — Two large Burmese pythons, a clutch of eggs and hatchlings were found and removed from Big Cypress National Preserve Monday night, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shared on its Facebook page.

While on night patrol, just before midnight, FWC Officer Matthew Rubenstein found Alex McDuffie with the South Florida Water Management District Python Elimination Program catching and bagging a recently hatched python in the South Florida preserve.

“So, the two teamed up to search the area to see if there were more,” FWC shared on its Facebook page. “Sure enough, they found a female python on a nest with 23 unhatched eggs, along with 18 other newly hatched pythons! The pythons and unhatched eggs were removed from the sensitive habitat, helping to prevent future negative impacts to our native wildlife.”

They also found a second nest nearby, but no snakes were present.

McDuffie later told Officer Rubenstein that he returned to the same area of the preserve Tuesday night and removed a second breeding female, which measured 17 feet, 6 inches long, the FWC said.

Burmese pythons, which aren’t native to Florida, are mostly found in the Everglades. There, they prey on birds, mammals and other reptiles. A female Burmese python can lay 50 to 100 eggs at a time, according to the agency.

FWC encourages people to remove and humanely kill pythons on public and private lands. The 2022 Florida Python Challenge is an annual 10-day event in the Everglades and will be held Aug. 5-14 this year.

Competitors are required to take online training through the state and register in advance. They could win thousands of dollars in prizes as they remove the invasive species from the Everglades.

Those who participated in the 2021 Florida Python Challenge last year removed 223 pythons from the wild.