Battle against invasive pythons enjoys record season, and a milestone
The battle against the invasive Burmese python by the Conservancy of Southwest Florida reached a milestone after a record removal season.
The removal season coincides with the breeding season of the python from November through April, with the Conservancy staff tracking 40 pythons, known as scout snakes that help in locating reproductive pythons.
There was a record 6,300 pounds of the invasive snake removed this season, bringing the total to a hefty milestone of more than 20 tons of Burmese pythons removed from a 200-square-mile area in Southwest Florida since 2013, the Conservancy announced.
'We have been on the front line of the invasive python battle for more than a decade,' said Ian Bartoszek, wildlife biologist and Conservancy Science Project Manager, who oversees the python program.
'Removing more than 40,000 pounds of snake, carried out through some of Florida's unrelenting wildlife habitats, is a heavy-lifting assignment. But, through years of dedicated research, we've developed science-based methods to track this apex predator more effectively and mitigate its damage to our native wildlife population.'
The Conservancy uses radio telemetry to track the tagged male pythons across a 200-square-mile area of public and private land from Naples through the Western Everglades.
Since 2013, the team has stopped an additional 20,000 python eggs from hatching.
The program is expected to expand into new areas, as the long-term monitoring has shown signs of positive effectiveness, as scout snakes are increasingly struggling to locate mates, or when they do, they are smaller in size.
'The Burmese python is decimating native wildlife across their invaded range,' said Rob Moher, President and CEO of the CSF. 'Here at the Conservancy, we also rehabilitate thousands of injured native animals in the von Arx Wildlife Hospital and release them back into the wild each year. The python team's work of reducing the local population of the invasive snake allows our native wildlife safer conditions to recover.'
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The Conservancy's python program is one of the leading research and removal initiatives globally. It is credited with capturing the largest female python ever documented to date; it measured 18 feet and weighed 215 pounds. It also captured the largest male python on record at 16 feet and 140 pounds.
'Burmese pythons are impressive creatures that are here from no fault of their own,' Bartoszek said. 'As wildlife biologists, we have tremendous respect for all snake species. However, we understand the impact invasive pythons are having on the biodiversity in our area, and we humanely remove them from the ecosystem as part of the Conservancy's commitment to protecting our water, land, wildlife, and future.'
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