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A contest to catch pythons is held in the Florida jungle to protect the nature reserve

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MIAMI – Over 230 Python The invasive Burmese has been successfully removed from Florida’s Everglades National Park. It is part of an annual competition to remove invasive species from the South Florida Wetlands Preserve.

The python catching contest also aims to protect rare habitats and the animals that live there. Desk Florida Wildlife said last week that 1,000 fighters from 32 states, Canada and Latvia managed to move 231 burmese python during the 10 day competition. This python catching competition is known as the Florida Python Challenge, which was held from August 5-14.

“Once again, the Florida Python Catching Race has yielded impressive results with hundreds of invasive pythons removed from the wild,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said in a statement.

“Eradicating these snakes is one of many efforts we are making to restore and maintain the Everglades system,” he added. According to The Nature Conservancy, an American grassroots organization, the first Burmese pythons were discovered in the Everglades in 1979 and are believed to be ancient pets.

Since then, the population of this invasive snake native to India, Lower China and the Malay Peninsula has swelled into the tens of thousands. According to the US National Park Service, the Burmese python is the main reason for the steep decline of mammals in the Everglades.

Race winner Matthew Concepcion took home the grand prize of US$10,000 for knocking out 28 Burmese pythons. Another hunter, Dustin Crum, won a $1,500 prize for taking down the longest python, a snake measuring over 3.3 meters.

Since 2000, more than 17,000 wild Burmese pythons have been removed from Florida. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, their presence harms native species.

“Each python removed in this race reduces its prey to our native birds, mammals and reptiles,” said Rodney Barreto, chairman of the commission.