Southeast Georgia has its annual Rattlesnake Roundup. Now Florida will have a slithery roundup of its own with the much heftier and maligned Burmese python.
Beginning Jan. 12, the public is invited to round up as many Burmese pythons as they can for top prizes of $1,500 in the 2013 Python Challenge.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is looking for all the help it can find in removing the invasive nonvenomous constrictor from the Everglades and other public wildlife areas.
Researchers at the University of Florida said the snakes, native of Southeast Asia, were first noticed in the Everglades National Park in 1979 and probably were originally dumped pets that found their way to the temperate region. It’s estimated that there are tens of thousands of the snakes today, decimating native small animals, birds and reptiles. The snakes have already made their way to the Florida Panhandle and into northern Florida.
Georgia’s colder climate is expected to keep the reptiles from establishing in South Georgia, even though an 11-foot-long Burmese python was found last month in Charlton County, according to The Augusta Chronicle. Charlton is the South Georgia county bordering Florida and it’s also where much of the Okefenokee Swamp is located. Wildlife officials believe the python was formerly a pet.
“Part of the goal of the Python Challenge is to educate the public to understand why nonnative species like Burmese pythons should never be released into the wild and encourage people to report sightings of exotic species,” Kristen Sommers, head of the FWC’s Exotic Species Coordination Section, said in a release. It’s illegal in Florida to sell or own one of the reptiles.
Organizers said two $1,500 prizes will be awarded for the most Burmese pythons captured – one for the public and one for an individual licensed to hunt pythons. Additional $1,000 prizes will be awarded for the longest Burmese python harvested in both categories.
The largest reptile caught so far was more than 17 feet long and it was about 164 pounds.
The Burmese pythons must be taken from the Everglades, Francis S. Taylor, Holey Land, Rotenberger and Big Cypress wildlife areaes. The competition ends at midnight Feb. 10.
One last thing: Organizers say participants may keep the skins.
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