Longest Burmese Python Captured in Florida

A female python, 18 feet, 8 inches long was caught and killed by a Miami man. The 128-pound python was the longest Burmese python ever captured in Florida. The snake was examined by scientists at the University of Florida, who said that the female python was not carrying any eggs, according to a news release.

Prior to this, the record length for a Burmese python captured in the wild in Florida was 17 feet, 7 inches. The Burmese python is an invasive species and is believed to have a negative impact on the Everglades ecosystem, along with the native wildlife. It is one of the six largest snakes in the world.

The python in question was spotted May 11 by Jason Leon and his passengers, who were riding late at night in a rural area of Southeast Miami-Dade County.  They noticed the snake as they passed by, with nearly 3 feet of its body sticking out of the roadside brush. Leon then grabbed the snake behind its head, dragged it out of the brush and killed it with a knife. Leon was quite aware that the long snake was a Burmese python; he had once owned a Burmese python as a pet, and has experience in dealing with the nonvenomous species.

"Jason Leon's nighttime sighting and capture of a Burmese python of more than 18 feet in length is a notable accomplishment that set a Florida record," Kristen Sommers, exotic species coordination section leader for the FWC, said in a press statement. "The FWC is grateful to him both for safely removing such a large Burmese python and for reporting its capture."

Leon then reported the matter to FWC's South Region Office, who later connected him with 888-IveGot1, FWC hotline, where one can report about exotic species. The snake was captured from an area that is known for its annual Python Challenge, where amateur and professional hunters trek through the Florida swamp to trace and kill well-camouflaged Burmese pythons, reports Nature World News.