Record Setting 17-Foot Python Captured at Big Cypress National Preserve

A South Florida wildlife preserve – Big Cypress National Preserve – reported capturing a python measuring over 17 feet long and 140 pounds. Oh yeah, it was also found to be carrying 73 developing eggs at the time..

A post on social media states, the female snake is the largest ever caught at Big Cypress National Preserve.

In a report from Smithsonian Magazine, scientists claim a hybrid python species can now be found across more than 1,000 square miles of South Florida. These highly invasive snakes have taken a serious toll on delicate food chain balances in the region – which they don’t belong to in the first place.

Native to Southeast Asia, Burmese pythons are known to reach lengths up to 23 feet long and are capable of weighing more than 200 pounds.

This particular snake from the Big Cypress National Preserve was captured with the help of a new tracking technology, the Facebook post states:

“Using male pythons with radio transmitters allows the team to track the male to locate breeding females. The team not only removes the invasive snakes, but collects data for research, develop new removal tools, and learn how the pythons are using the Preserve.“

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