Invasion of the Burmese pythons, part 1

In the Florida Everglades, the Burmese python is an invasive species that's close to triggering an ecological collapse. But not if these python hunters have anything to do with it.

Mike Kirkland remembers the first time Burmese pythons came onto his radar at work, about six years ago.

“Our executive director at the time, saw a video of a python holding an alligator underwater and drowning it. And the video went viral in January of 2017,” Kirkland said.

Kirkland is an invasive species biologist at the South Florida Water Management District. It’s a government agency in charge of all things water, which in the Florida Everglades includes more than four million acres of subtropical wilderness.

Invasive species are one of the top 5 conservation problems in the world. When species that don't belong in a particular ecosystem start to multiply, they can have disastrous effects.

After Kirkland’s colleague saw the video of the python, he hatched a plan: Create a team of bounty hunters to catch and kill Burmese pythons. At the time, and still today, anyone can kill a python — some people have practically made it a pastime. But Kirkland's official team gets paid for it.

Now, six years later, Kirkland has devoted his life to the effort of removing Burmese pythons from the Everglades.

“You wouldn't imagine how much trouble that they caused down here. In fact, when I first came to Everglades … I thought that there was room for another apex predator in the Everglades. And now look at me. This has consumed my life and I couldn't have been more wrong,” Kirkland said.

Burmese pythons are huge compared to the native snakes in Florida. They can measure up to 20 feet and weigh 200 pounds, more than double the size of the largest native snake. In fact, they are one of the top five biggest snakes on Earth.

The females lay up to 100 eggs. And they eat just about everything, from animals as small as a mouse to as big as a bobcat or an alligator.

Burmese pythons are causing immense destruction throughout the Everglades ecosystem.

So, The Wild team traveled to South Florida to meet two of the most skilled python hunters on Kirkland’s team to learn about how they’re tackling the invasion of the Burmese python.

THE WILD is a production of KUOW in Seattle in partnership with Chris Morgan Wildlife and Wildlife Media. It is produced by Lucy Soucek and Matt Martin, and edited by Jim Gates. It is hosted, produced and written by Chris Morgan. Fact checking by Apryle Craig. Our theme music is by Michael Parker.

Check out the behind the scenes footage of the 10-foot Burmese python capture.

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