Three recent incidents of Burmese pythons slithering around homes in South Florida were captured on video and raise the question of whether the invasive snakes are closing in on urban areas.
A python was found tucked inside the engine compartment of a tractor-trailer parked near a Miami residence on Aug. 23, while another was captured in a home's yard a day later, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.
Additionally, after receiving a report of a snake inside a Miami residence, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue captured and removed a large Burmese python from a shed on the property (see videos below).
The nonvenomous constrictor snakes are native to South Asia, but since being introduced to Florida, they have become one of the most destructive invasive species the state has ever seen.
The Burmese python is one of the largest snakes in the world. Adult pythons average between 6 and 9 feet, though the longest ever caught in Florida was 19 feet. The heaviest weighed over 200 pounds.
Burmese pythons are an invasive species in Florida, with an estimated population in the tens of thousands spread across more than 1,000 square miles of South Florida, including Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve.
Do the recent incidents of Burmese pythons around Florida homes indicate an invasion into urban areas?
According to a 2021 study, pythons generally avoid urban areas. However, they select habitats somewhat near urban environments, with "selection peaking at a distance of just 515 meters from urban development."
Environments with large volumes of plant waste material that attract small mammals, hobby farms with chickens and goats, and housing developments bordering natural areas with artificial lakes and aquatic birds, may provide prey cues for pythons, the study notes.
Previous reports of Burmese pythons in populated areas and near homes include:
* In the wake of Hurricane Helene in 2024, residents of the tiny island community of Chokoloskee reported a "python invasion," with dozens of sightings, Gulf Coast News reported. One man claimed to have caught 10 pythons in a matter of weeks.
* In October 2023, a Cape Coral couple found a coiled 9-foot Burmese python near their garage. The homeowner, along with two neighbors, caught and dispatched the python, according to WFLA.
* In 2021, a man and his mother spotted a massive 300-pound, 16-foot Burmese python outside of their home in Zolfo Springs, Newsweek reported. Zolfo Springs is located about 60 miles northeast of Sarasota. The man enlisted serveral family members to help wrangle the giant snake and shoot it.
* Also in 2021, a woman found a large python outside her Coral Gables home, CBS reported. FWC removed the snake.
* In 2019, a 6-foot python was spotted swimming in Naples Bay, near Windstar and swimming toward Port Royal, according to previous Naples Daily News reports.
* A Cocoa Beach woman found a 5-foot python outside her back door in 2017, Florida Today reported. Police caught the animal and turned it over to Brevard County Animal Services and Enforcement.
Video: See Burmese python removal from home's shed in Florida
Has a Burmese python ever killed a human in Florida?
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, human fatalities from non-venomous snakes are rare, with an average of one or two per year worldwide.
There have been no human deaths from wild-living Burmese pythons in Florida.
And while python attacks on humans are unlikely, they're not impossible.
Per USGS, "In suburban areas and parks in Florida that contain ponds, canals or other bodies of water where large snakes could feel at home, the situation is likely similar to that experienced with alligators: attacks are improbable but possible in any locality where the animals are present and people are also present. The simplest and most sure-fire way to reduce the risk of human fatalities is to avoid interacting with a large constrictor."
Invasive Burmese pythons wreak havoc on Everglades ecosystem
Burmese pythons are an invasive species established across more than a thousand square miles of South Florida, including Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve and Collier-Seminole State Park.
The constrictors have few predators and prey on native species, eating just about anything from field mice to deer.
According to a 2012 study, they've contributed to the decline of raccoons, opossums, bobcats, foxes, and marsh and cottontail rabbits.
What's the largest Burmese python caught in Florida?
Burmese pythons are among the largest snakes in the world, with adult animals averaging between 10 and 16 feet long, according to the University of Florida.
A group of python hunters caught the longest Burmese python ever measured on July 10, 2023, in the Big Cypress National Preserve in eastern Collier County.
The monster snake was 19 feet long.
The heaviest Burmese python ever recorded was caught by Conservancy of Southwest Florida biologists in the Florida Everglades in 2022. The colossal female python weighed an eye-popping 215 pounds and was nearly 18 feet long.
How did the Burmese python get to Florida?
Burmese pythons are native to Southeast Asia. Many of the invasive snakes came to the U.S. because of their popularity in the pet trade, according to the USGS.
The snakes were then intentionally or accidentally released in South Florida.
How many Burmese pythons are in Florida, Everglades?
Burmese pythons "can survive in and utilize a variety of habitats found in the region, and many of these areas are difficult to access and effectively survey," the USGS reported.
The agency conservatively estimates the Burmese python population in the Florida Everglades region in the tens of thousands.
How far north in Florida are pythons found?
According to Florida Fish and Wildlife, Burmese pythons are established from just south of Lake Okeechobee to Key Largo and from western Broward County west to Collier County, including:
* Everglades National Park
* Biscayne National Park
* Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge
* Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area
* Big Cypress National Preserve
* Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park
* Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
* Picayune Strand State Forest
* Collier-Seminole State Park
* Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve
Any pythons found outside of those areas are likely escaped or released captive animals.
However, "due to the cryptic nature of pythons, it can take a while to gather enough evidence to confirm new areas of establishment," FWC said.
How big do Burmese pythons in Florida get?
Burmese pythons are among the largest snakes in the world, with adult animals averaging between 10 and 16 feet long, according to the University of Florida.
A group of python hunters caught the longest Burmese python ever measured on July 10, 2023, in the Big Cypress National Preserve in eastern Collier County.
The monster snake was 19 feet long.
The heaviest Burmese python ever recorded was caught by Conservancy of Southwest Florida biologists in the Florida Everglades in 2022. The colossal female python weighed an eye-popping 215 pounds and was nearly 18 feet long.