Researchers tracking Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades noticed something unexpected over several years: many of the snakes they had fitted with transmitters stopped moving and died. The
Researchers tracking Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades noticed something unexpected over several years: many of the snakes they had fitted with transmitters stopped moving and died. The deaths occurred in clusters, and the animals showed no signs of injury, predation, or struggle. With no external cause identified, the research team, led by Dr. Michael Kirkland, brought the bodies into a l…
A drone has finally caught what’s killing Florida’s invasive pythons, and scientists didn’t expect this. For years, researchers watched the giant snakes vanish from certain areas without explanation.
In December 2022, biologists with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida found the body of a radio-tagged Burmese python in pinewoods near Naples. The male snake, known as Loki, had been part of their research program for more than six years. The team had checked on him days earlier and found him in good condition. When they followed his signal after a cold front moved through, the head and neck of…