Florida’s vast wetlands are falling quiet as a deadly intruder spreads unchecked through the swamps.
Plan to stop “toilet snake” invasion begins with $10,000 prize for whoever catches the most snakes
The silence in the Everglades is unsettling. The birds no longer sing, and the frogs have stopped croaking. In their place, there’s only the whisper of wind brushing across the cut grass. Once teeming with wildlife, this vast swampland in southern Florida is slowly being consumed by an invader: the Burmese python.
These enormous snakes, which can grow longer than 16 feet, have become dominant predators in the ecosystem. Introduced accidentally in the 1990s after being imported from Asia as exotic pets, many were abandoned in the wild – some even flushed down toilets – earning them the nickname “toilet snakes.” Today, authorities estimate that more than a million may be living in the Everglades.
With no natural predators in the region, the pythons pose an unprecedented threat. They devour everything from small mammals to alligators and have decimated large swaths of native fauna. Their adaptability and stealth make them nearly undetectable in the thick vegetation.
Inside Florida’s python problem
Donna Kalil, one of the state’s official python hunters, drives along dirt roads every night searching for the reptiles, as HuffPost reports. Armed with a flashlight, a modified pickup truck and a screwdriver as her deadly tool, she has killed more than 700 pythons. “I don’t like to talk about killing,” she says. But she does it – with precision and no room for error.
Kalil is part of a state-funded program that pays professional hunters to control the snake population. Each python captured can earn up to $175, with additional bonuses for nests containing eggs. Florida also hosts the annual Python Challenge, a public competition open to anyone who completes a basic training course, offering a $10,000 prize to the person who captures the most snakes.
A losing battle for science
Despite these efforts, the results remain bleak. Since 2005, only around 12,000 pythons have been removed – a tiny fraction of the estimated total. Biologists like Brandon Welty are trying to track their movements using transmitters and weekly surveys, but the Everglades’ dense terrain makes it an uphill battle. “We might already have lost,” he admits with resignation. Attempts using sniffer dogs, drones and hormone-based lures have also failed to yield success.
The pythons use water channels as natural highways to expand their range. Their digestion – among the most efficient in the animal kingdom – allows them to swallow large prey and go weeks without feeding again. Their bodies adapt rapidly, enlarging internal organs during digestion to maximize nutrient absorption.
A new snake challenger emerges
Rosie Moore, a geoscientist and science communicator, has joined the fight. With her unconventional approach – athletic wear and luxury cars – she scours the area in search of snakes. “I love them, but they don’t belong here,” she says. Moore documents the damage the reptiles have caused and works on studies examining their ecological impact. In her view, the danger can no longer be erased – but it can still be reduced.
And as Kalil returns home without a new catch, she issues one final warning: “Have you heard of the tegu?” She’s referring to another invasive species – a South American lizard that feeds on the eggs of alligators and birds. “Looks like we’ve got a new enemy… and it might be even worse than the pythons,” she says.
The python removal competition begins at 12:01 a.m. on July 11, 2025 and ends at 5 p.m. on July 20, 2025. You can register here!
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