DAVIE, FL – JANUARY 12: A Burmese python is held by Jeff Fobb as he speaks to the media at the registration event and press conference for the start of the 2013 Python Challenge on January 12, 2013 in Davie, Florida.The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and its partners launched the month long 2013 Python Challenge to harvest Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades, a species that is not native to Florida.The contest features prizes of $1,000 for catching the longest snake and $1,500 for catching the most. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
I'm sure you know by now that snakes are my biggest fear and a record breaking python was just found in Collier County.
The largest in Florida history is a female snake was found in Picayune Strand and was 18 feet long, weighed 215 pounds and was carrying 122 eggs.
It's pretty cool how this snake was found, and it was through the use of “scout snakes” which are male snakes that have implanted radio transmitters that help biologists track the patterns and movement of the snakes.
Ian Bartoszek, a wildlife biologist and environmental science project manager for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida told NBC2, "The removal of female pythons plays a critical role in disrupting the breeding cycle of these apex predators that are wreaking havoc on the Everglades ecosystem and taking food sources from other native species."
If you're interested in helping to remove these snakes, Governor DeSantis announced the 2022 Florida Python Challenge will take place in August. For more information, click here
Pics From Previous Florida Python Challenges:
Pythons are a huge problem in the Everglades, which is why the state has 25 state-contracted invasive python hunters in the Florida Everglades. One of them being Python Cowboy. I've seen enough of these videos to know that hunting pythons in the swamp is completely insane. There's just so many things there that want to kill you. So to go in, hunt, and capture these gigantic pythons is insane. Even better is when they bring along cameras to capture it all for their Youtube channel. The channel "Python Cowboy" has 132,000 subscribers and provides some amazing footage. In his latest video his hunting dog, Moose, comes across a nest. A giant mama python guarding 45 (or more) eggs. When you watch the video you'll probably have the same question I have, which is "why doesn't he use some kind of hook or tool?". Dude literally reaches into the nest and grabs a monster snake by the neck. The video description is "We Found The Biggest Python Nest With Over 45 Eggs On Python Island. Allie, moose and I are heading out to python islands to check out the GPS locations I've marked over the last year to see what we can find. This trip did not disappoint. We ended up finding a python nest. It was one of the biggest python nest I've found. "
The Everglades are so crazy we actually have a category for it on our website. The other question I had on this video was "what does he do with the eggs?" He freezes them and sells them for educational purposes. My money would have been on frying them up. I wonder what a python egg would taste like? Like chicken? I put so much hot sauce on my eggs I doubt that I'd even notice the difference.
If you're short on time or impatient, skip ahead to the 6 minute mark
Absolutely insane what goes on with these hunts. And his dogs are absolutely fearless.
He also hunts another one of our invasive species - iguanas
Iguanas in Florida are no joke. They can really wreck the ecosystem. I've got one in the trees in my back yard and I'm not sure how to get rid of it.
Otto The Dog is a tremendous iguana hunter
Otto is absolutely fearless. And these iguanas aren't just a Miami problem. We're seeing a lot more of them in Southwest Florida, especially near the banks.
Check out what he uses to hunt hogs
Impressive. Kinda makes me want to own one of those.
A true Florida Man
It really doesn't get any more Florida than Python Cowboy. An absolute beast out in the swamps. Thanks for doing what you do.
Record Breaking Python Collier
