Getty Image / Joe Raedle
A python hunter in Florida just captured one of the largest Burmese pythons ever caught and he did it on a solo trip.
Will Lamphear shared photos of his incredible catch on Instagram which were shared quickly and widely in the Florida snake-hunting community. I came across the pictures through another snake hunter’s Instagram story and was stunned by the size of this Burmese python.
Lamphear shared five photos of his incredible catch. The first two pictures show the massive 16 foot, 2 inch python wrapped around his neck. There are two photos of the snake stretched out on the ground to really get a sense of how long it is. And the fifth image is Will and a friend holding the snake and it’s easy to see the girth and heft of this incredible reptile which also happens to be an invasive species in Florida.
16 foot Burmese Python caught in Florida
This 16’2″ Burmese python is just a glimpse into how massive these snakes are getting in S.FL as they thrive in The Florida Everglades despite being an invasive species.
Earlier this Summer, a 19-foot Burmese python was caught and marked the largest snake ever captured in Florida.
The group of python wranglers brought their catch to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida to learn more about the specimen. It weighed a whopping 125 pounds and measured 19 feet on the dot (579 centimeters).
22-year-old Naples, Florida-based python hunter Jake Waleri told the Conservancy of Southwest Florida “We brought the snake to the Conservancy to be officially measured and documented. We wanted to donate this find to science.”
Several years ago, an 18’9″ python was captured. And just last month an 18-footer was caught in the Everglades by a group of guys who drove down from Tampa. Video footage of that snake being caught on the side of the road went viral:
One thing is for certain, the longer this invasive species exists in Florida the bigger the high-end specimens are growing. They are perfectly adapted to thriving in South Florida wetlands which offers an endless array of prey. There are predators in the Glades who eat these Burmese pythons, like alligators or raptors, but their camouflage is also incredibly suited for the South Florida terrain making them very difficult for predators to spot if they don’t want to be found.
Meanwhile, across the pond, the West Midlands Police in West Bromwich, England just captured a massive python themselves. This is, of course, not an invasive species but certainly an escaped pet. Never the less, seeing a 12ft yellow python slithering down the road in England must’ve came as a shock:
A truly gorgeous snake!