Taylor Stanberry made history in the Everglades, winning big in Florida’s annual Python Challenge.
Ten days, 100-degree heat, and 60 snakes later, she came out on top
If you haven’t heard, this story seems to have everything you’d want. Hot temperatures, danger, record-breaking snakes, and one woman who took down dozens of them in under two weeks. You need to know more, right?
The 2025 Florida Python Challenge turned into a landmark event when 29-year-old Taylor Stanberry of Naples caught 60 Burmese pythons in just 10 days, the most ever recorded in the competition’s history.
Key points:
- Stanberry is the first woman to win the grand prize in the contest’s 12-year history.
- She earned $10,000 after catching 60 snakes, ranging from hatchlings to a 9.5-foot python.
- A total of 294 pythons were captured this year, the most since the challenge began in 2013.
- The hunt targets the invasive species devastating the Everglades ecosystem.
Why is Florida hunting Burmese pythons?
Florida began organized python hunts in 2012 after studies showed devastating impacts on wildlife in Everglades National Park. One 2012 report suggested the snakes were responsible for a collapse of up to 100% of raccoon and rabbit populations in some areas. Burmese pythons, originally released or escaped from the pet trade, now breed freely, laying up to 100 eggs at a time.
As stated by Sarah Funk of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, “Every invasive python removed is a win.” Since 2019, hunters are said to have removed more than 15,800 snakes from south Florida wetlands.
What made this year’s challenge different?
Two firsts stood out in 2025: Stanberry’s historic win and the record number of pythons captured. The competition drew more than 900 hunters, from professionals to novices and even a military category. For the first time, Everglades National Park allowed hunting inside its boundaries during the event.
Timing also mattered. Hatchlings were emerging in mid-July, giving hunters like Stanberry and fellow competitor Donna Kalil plenty of smaller, easier-to-find targets. Kalil, a veteran contract hunter, caught 56 snakes, winning $2,500 in the professional category.
Stanberry, who works with exotic animals and has hunted pythons for a decade, said she’d never entered the contest before. At just 4 feet 11 inches tall, she proved that grit, not size, is what you really need to be a champion python hunter. Maybe I’ll give it a try next year...
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