Florida’s Big Problem: Snakes in the Grass are Big as Phone Poles

When you think of Florida you probably think of alligators, flamingos, and maybe snakes—but snakes as big as telephone poles? And the non-indigenous snakes taking over Florida aren’t the only invaders.

Florida, land of sunshine, endless beaches, palm trees, and resort hotels, is also home to a growing number of Burmese pythons. In Florida’s Everglades National Park, 95 pythons were captured last year, not counting a 13-footer that exploded after trying to eat an alligator. In February, a group of tourists at the Pa-hay-okee Overlook came upon a battle between an alligator and a python, with the snake wrapped around the alligator in a tight embrace. After a fierce struggle, the alligator rolled over and grabbed the snake in its mouth, swimming off as the victor. Another group of tourists later watched another battle between a snake and an alligator at the Everglade’s Anhinga Trail. After spending more than 24 hours in the mouth of the alligator, the snake was able to break free and slither off into the marsh.

The Burmese Python is a popular—and legal—pet snake in the United States. In the last five years, there have been nearly 150,000 Burmese pythons imported into the US, and hatchlings can sell for as little as $20. But once the cute baby snakes turn into 15-foot-long beasts that eat more than their owners do, many people decide to just get rid of their pets by releasing them into the wild. The snakes are perfectly at home in the Everglades’ water, heat, and vegetation, and they have no predators.

"All of the Burmese pythons that we see in the park are a product of the international pet trade," said Skip Snow, a wildlife biologist at Everglades National Park. Snow’s office maintains a "python sightings" hotline so people can alert them to snakes on the loose. Since the mid-1990s, park rangers have had to respond to a steadily increasing number of calls about Burmese pythons in Everglades National Park. The problem is getting much worse now because the snakes are most certainly breeding in the park. They have been found eating squirrels, black rats, possums, and even house wrens.

Wildlife officials are worried because the snakes, which can grow to 20 feet long, may also be preying on native mangrove fox squirrels and wood storks, and they could be competing with the eastern indigo snake for both food and space. The eastern indigo snake is listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a threatened species. There are also increasing serious concerns about human safety as well, since the mammoth snakes are able to subdue and kill alligators, which are much stronger than human beings.

To keep the problem from getting even more out of hand, state Rep. Ralph Poppell is proposing a bill to add Burmese pythons to Florida’s list of regulated reptiles. The bill, which could force python buyers to complete state training, buy a license, and face jail time if they release their snakes into the wild, is being heard in committees on both sides.

The Burmese python is just one of thousands of non-native animals and plants that have invaded the United States in the last few decades. Florida has become overrun by exotic creatures that are not indigenous, such as African monitor lizards and vervet monkeys, and other states are facing similar problems. Although some invasive species arrive here by accident, stowing away on cargo ships or inside packing materials, many plants and animals enter the U.S. legitimately as part of a booming trade in exotic pets, plants, and food items. A survey earlier this year showed that 16 species of non-native tropical fish have been found at 32 locations along the southeast coast of Florida—all of them most likely introduced when hobbyists got tired of their aquariums and dumped their fish into the ocean.

Florida is not alone in dealing with the problem. The emerald ash borer, a metallic green Asian beetle that arrived at a Great lakes port in wooden packing material a couple of years ago, has destroyed over six million trees in Michigan. The African clawed frog, native to Kenya, eats almost anything and breeds prolifically. The frog has completely taken over Lily Pond in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, altering the ecosystem by eating insects, fish, and even birds. The only way to prevent them from spreading would be to kill them, but doing so would cost millions of dollars and California can’t afford it.

The ecological impact of the growing threat from non-native species is a grim one. Invasive species are a leading cause of species endangerment and extinction worldwide. Almost half of the species on the endangered species list in the United States are there because of threats to their habitat from introduced species. Steven Williams, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, says that invasive species are the number one environmental threat to the United States. Experts say the US has been too slow to act in response to this growing problem, and is now paying the price. Once invasive species are established, they are virtually impossible to eradicate, so the focus is now on simply controlling them.

Increased global travel and trade have only served to exacerbate the biological pollution. The booming trade in exotic animals as pets has compounded the problem, with Miami International Airport reportedly receiving 70 foreign shipments each day, some containing thousands of animals such as tarantulas, lizards, and snakes. Many of the species are illegally imported, and less than 3 percent of cargo containers are actually opened and checked. But many of the exotic animals are legal, including 22 of the 24 python species known around the world. Snow, the Everglades National park biologist, knows that the problem is a grave one that he deals with every single day. He has just one thing to say to pet owners who may have grown tired of their exotic animals: "Please don’t release them into the wild."