How are the Everglades affected by pythons?

In recent years, snakes from around the world have been turning up in and around Everglades National Park. Burmese pythons, one of the largest snake species on earth, are now known to be breeding in the park and spreading throughout south Florida. read more

But sometime over the past few decades, Burmese pythons began appearing in Everglades National Park in south Florida. The snakes were most likely either pets that had been released into the wild or their descendants, and, like countless tourists before them, they took very well to the tropical heat and lush greenery of Florida. read more

The Burmese Python (Python bivittatus), native to various parts of Southeast Asia, was originally imported to the United States as a popular exotic pet. At the end of the 20th century, scientists noticed an established population of the invasive snakes in the Everglades National Park in Florida and deemed them dangerous to the ecosystem. read more

The month-long challenge only removed 68 snakes, but Carli Segelson, a spokeswoman with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said the event drew national and international attention to the Burmese python and other nonnative species. read more