Over 800 hunters are expected to compete for four-figure prizes to capture one of the world's largest snake species.
The Florida Python Challenge, held August 5-14, urges hunters to remove invasive Burmese pythons, which can grow up to 20 feet long, from public lands.
Florida offers prizes up to $2,500 for snakes. Additional prizes are awarded to the hunter who brings in the longest python.
Hunters who kill snakes inhumanely or kill non-invasive species will be disqualified.
The python is established throughout South Florida in Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Collier counties, primarily within Everglades wetlands. Although they are legal to hunt on private land all year round, the Python Challenge opens up more than 1.5 million acres of his public land to would-be snake hunters.
Florida Fish & According to the Wildlife Commission (FWC), pythons prey on locally endangered species such as the Key Largo woodrat.
They also brought several invasive species into Florida, including parasites that live in the lungs of reptiles. Although it may affect native snake species, the extent and impact of this virus on Florida wildlife is not fully understood," an FWC spokesperson told Metro.co.uk. .
"When I first learned about pythons, I had no idea how much they were devastating local ecosystems," said Casey DeSantis, First Lady of Florida. said at the kickoff of the event. "Every python removed will have one less invasive species that preys on our native birds, mammals and reptiles. Ron Bergeron.
Pythons are popular as exotic pets." but is now illegal to own in Florida.The Everglades population is believed to be descended from escaped pets dating back to the 1980s.
To kick off the 2022 Florida Python Challenge®, we traveled to the Everglades with Alligator Ron and other great environmental advocates to join more than 800 people from 32 states and, unfortunately, the Everglades Hunt the pythons that are harming the ecosystem ð pic.twitter.com/hfQWK193Bt
— Casey DeSantis (@CaseyDeSantis) Aug 5, 2022
In 2021, more than 600 people from over 25 states killed a total of 223 pythons in one week.
The python challenge is just one way the FWC tried to keep snakes out of Florida: The commission set up python patrols, coordinated python sighting hotlines, and tracked snakes so they could be located. Dog training has also begun.
It's all part of a "multi-pronged approach to controlling pythons across the landscape," the FWC told Metro.co.uk.
In his 2022 budget for the state of Florida, he has been allocated $3 million in funds for python extermination. The FWC calls it a "record investment".
As an invasive species, hunters do not need to obtain a license to hunt pythons. However, to enter the contest, hunters must pay a $25 fee and take an online course to ensure that they kill snakes using human methods.
16,000 since 2000. Although more pythons have been eradicated, it is still proving difficult to completely eradicate the snake. A single female python can lay 50 to 100 of her eggs at a time.
The FWC warns people to take precautions around pythons due to their large size. Although nonvenomous, adult pythons regularly grow to enormous sizes and can kill prey by asphyxiation.
webnews Please contact the news team by emailing @metro.co.uk.
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