Trappers in Florida have managed to capture a 98 pound 18 feet and 4 inches long Burmese Python, which is now being considered as the second largest python that has ever been found in Florida.
Jonathan Lopez and Cynthia Downer, a couple, managed to capture the snake on September 22, 2019, at the Big Cypress National Preserve in Ochopee, Florida.
Jonathan and Cynthia are part of the Python Action Team, which is a group of trappers that remove large snakes from the everglades.
The snake that the couple captures is a female, which is 98.1 pounds heavy and is 18 feet 4 inches long.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission confirmed that this is the second-largest python that has been captured in Florida.
The Commission said this is the largest snake captured in the Big Cypress National Preserve in Ochopee, Florida.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation said hunting female Burmese pythons is really important for them, as a single hatch by a Burmese Python can add 30 to 60 hatchlings each time they breed.
Downer shared a picture of their catch on Facebook and said this is what an “18’4″ of python looks curled up like a cinnamon roll.”
Downer credited her team for the outstanding work.
On the post she made, she also wrote, “I need his support, driving skills, catching skills, quick thinking, and physical strength just as much as he needed my crazy arse to convince him it was a good idea to pull all-nighters driving around in the deep dark Everglades looking for snakes.”
Authorities in Florida said the Python Action Team was assembled so they could double down and capture Burmese Pythons that were roaming in the wild in South Florida.
The snakes are not natives to the state and they could possibly eat any animal that comes in front of them, which includes an escaped house pet.
The Executive Director of the Python Action Team, Eric Sutton, was interviewed by Fox6, in which he said, “Removing 900 pythons is a great milestone for our Python Action Team! These snakes, coupled with the thousands removed by our partners at the National Park Service and the South Florida Water Management District, make a significant impact to protect Florida’s native wildlife.”
900 pythons are a lot of huge snakes!