iStockphoto
Audio By Carbonatix
Florida has spent decades attempting to address its Burmese python problem, and the state holds an annual competition that gives members of the public the opportunity to lend a hand. The participants who took part in the 2025 Florida Python Challenge managed to set a record by the time it wrapped up, and one woman walked away with a $10,000 prize after being responsible for more than 20% of the total.
There are hundreds of unique species native to Florida that have found a home in the Everglades, but there is also one that seemingly has no business being there that has nonetheless managed to proliferate: the Burmese python.
Those snakes, which can grow up to 19 feet in length and tip the scales at over 200 pounds, can be found in the wild in Southeast Asia but have also managed to set up shop in Florida. An exotic animal farm that was ravaged by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 is commonly painted as the primary culprit, but some experts believe the current population can trace its roots back to pythons that were originally kept as pets before being released in the vicinity of the Everglades prior to that point.
The size of that population is also a bit of a mystery, as official estimates currently peg Florida’s Burmese population from as low as 30,000 to as high as 300,000. Officials in the state have gone to great lengths in an attempt to fight back against the invasive species—which includes an annual hunt where they serve as the primary prey.
Hunters who took part in the 2025 Florida Python Challenge set a new record with the help of the woman who won $10,000 after bagging 60 snakes
MyFWC
In 2013, more than 1,600 people participated in the month-long hunt that served as the inaugural Florida Python Challenge, which led to 68 of the snakes being removed. It was held for the second time in 2016 before becoming an annual outing in 2020, and this year, 934 people from 30 different states (as well as Canada) received a permit to get in on the action during the 10-day affair.
2022 marked the high point for the challenge thanks to the 231 pythons that were eradicated during the hunt, but according to a press release the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shared on Wednesday, there’s a new mark to beat after this year’s competition came to a close.
When everything was said and done, 294 pythons were removed from the eight different locations in southern Florida that served as the official hunting grounds. No one tracked down more of them than Taylor Stanberry, a Florida resident who operates an exotic animal sanctuary in Naples, who took down 60 and got the $10,000 prize reserved for the person who tracks down the most.
MyFWC
The FWC also highlighted some other achievements, including the longest python caught during the competition: one that measured in at 15’11”, which netted Michael Marousky $1,000.
It may be a drop in the bucket when you take the size of the population into consideration, but it’s still a step in the right direction.