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Oct 30, 2009 12:30 pm US/Eastern
First Statewide Python Hunt Ends Saturday
TALLAHASSEE (CBS4) ―
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This captured Burmese python measured 17 feet.
FWC
The first phase in Florida's statewide python hunt will end Saturday; the results are somewhat surprising.
Hunters have trapped and killed 37 pythons since the snake hunt began in July. That's only a tiny fraction of the thousands of wild pythons in South Florida. Most of the pythons captured were found east of the Everglades.
Some estimates indicate there are more than 100,000 Burmese pythons in the Everglades, many of them former pets released by their owners. The snakes can grow longer than 20 feet and they have few predators in Florida.
The snakes, caught by 15 licensed snake experts, range in size from baby hatchlings to more than 10 feet long. The hunt ends October 31st to avoid conflicts with hunters because the gun hunting season is under way and runs through the end of the year.
It appears a second phase of the hunt will begin in January. The cooler weather may lead to more snakes being available in the daytime. Night-time hunting has been the norm in the midst of the first hunt.
Florida's Exotic Species Coordinator Scott Hardin says he expects the state to license more hunters after the first of the year, perhaps as many as 50.
The pilot program made a surprising discovery: many of the pythons were young snakes and they were not getting much to eat. However, Hardin says, the hunt clearly shows pythons are reproducing in South Florida.
"What we found that surprised us maybe a little bit was how many young pythons they found. Most of our guys were working in the area to the east of the Everglades and most of the 37 snakes were less than four feet long."
There are fears snake meat could appear in the public market; some of the pythons reportedly had very high levels of mercury.
Meanwhile, Fish and Wildlife Conservation commissioners will look at recommendations from staff in December focusing on how to limit the expanding python population. A complete ban on the sale or importation of pythons is on the table.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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