The Florida government has begun accepting registrations for this year’s Python Challenge from May 24, with a total prize pool of up to $30,000.
Burmese Python invasion in Florida during the 1980s. (Photo: Miami Herald).
The competition lasts for 10 days, from August 4 to August 13, and is open to both professional and amateur hunters. As in previous years, the grand prize of $10,000 will be awarded to the hunter who captures the most pythons, along with several smaller prizes in other categories, according to Business Insider.
“There is no place in the world like the Everglades in the U.S.; we need to continue protecting and restoring this natural treasure,” said Ron Bergeron, a board member of the South Florida Water Management District. “Removing invasive pythons from the Everglades ecosystem is critically important. We must do everything we can to fight this species.”
Last year’s participants eliminated 231 invasive Burmese Pythons in the Everglades, surpassing the numbers from 2021 and nearly doubling those from 2020. Nearly 1,000 people from 32 states, Canada, and Latvia registered to participate.
In addition to the opportunity to hunt pythons year-round on 25 state-managed lands, hunters can kill Burmese Pythons on private property at any time with the landowner’s permission, without needing a permit. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourages residents to hunt pythons whenever possible.
Burmese Pythons are not native to Florida and are negatively impacting native wildlife. This invasive species primarily inhabits the Everglades ecosystem in South Florida, where they prey on birds, mammals, and other reptiles. A female Burmese Python can lay between 50 to 100 eggs at a time. Since 2000, over 18,000 Burmese Pythons have been eliminated, according to the FWC.
