Updated

Updated · abcnews.com · Jul 11

Burmese Pythons Establish New Florida Colony in Charlotte County as Detection Rates Stay at 1%-3%

Updated

Updated · abcnews.com · Jul 11

Burmese Pythons Establish New Florida Colony in Charlotte County as Detection Rates Stay at 1%-3%

Q: Beyond devouring wildlife, how are invasive pythons now unintentionally reshaping Florida's landscape one digested seed at a time?

Invasive Burmese pythons are now reshaping Florida’s landscape by becoming accidental seed dispersers, moving viable seeds across the ecosystem after eating fruit-eating birds and mammals. Researchers have found 25 kinds of seeds in python digestive tracts, including native plants such as cabbage palm and creeping cucumber, as well as invasive plants like Brazilian pepper. The process is known as secondary seed dispersal: the snake does not eat the fruit itself, but swallows prey that already contains seeds, then deposits those seeds elsewhere. The key concern is that many of those seeds survive digestion. Studies found that nearly 40% of cabbage palm seeds recovered from pythons were still able to germinate. Because pythons can travel farther than many of the small mammals they consume, they may spread seeds over longer distances and into new habitats. That matters because pythons are also wiping out many of Florida’s native mammals and birds that normally disperse seeds. In effect, they are replacing native seed dispersers while simultaneously disrupting the rest of the food web. Scientists warn this could alter where plants grow, help both native and invasive species establish in new places, and gradually change habitat structure in the Everglades and beyond. So the damage is no longer limited to predation: one digested seed at a time, pythons may be quietly redrawing Florida’s plant map.

3 articles · Updated · abcnews.com · Jul 11

Western Charlotte County has become a newly established breeding area for Burmese pythons, marking a satellite population outside the species' previously recognized South Florida core range.
FWC said reports began rising in 2020 around Rotonda West, Placida, Englewood East and South Gulf Cove, and officials see no sign the snakes arrived through natural migration.
Biologists instead believe escaped or intentionally released captive snakes founded the colony, a pattern consistent with earlier introductions that helped the species spread across South Florida.
Researchers warn the apex predator can decimate local mammals and simplify ecosystems, but tracking the invasion is difficult because surveys detect only 1% to 3% of snakes.
FWC and partner agencies are continuing surveys in Charlotte and Lee counties as the expansion raises concern that more Gulf Coast ecosystems could be disrupted.

Sources

abcnews.com6h ago

Invasive Burmese Pythons Establish New Satellite Population in Western Charlotte County, Florida

AOL6h ago

Naples scientist, Conservancy document even more Burmese pythons - AOL

Yahoo! Voices6h ago

How Florida biologists discovered a Burmese python swallowing a fully-grown deer

5 Sources

Beyond devouring wildlife, how are invasive pythons now unintentionally reshaping Florida's landscape one digested seed at a time?

Eradication is impossible. Can radio-tagged 'scout snakes' and record bounties halt the python's relentless northward march?

Burmese Pythons Breeding in Charlotte County: Florida’s Invasive Snake Crisis Escalates Beyond Everglades

Overview

Charlotte County, Florida, has become a new stronghold for Burmese pythons, marking the first time a breeding population has been confirmed outside their traditional southern range. This major expansion beyond the Everglades signals a successful colonization effort and brings new challenges for wildlife management and conservation. Historically, these invasive snakes were concentrated in Everglades National Park, but their populations have steadily expanded. The presence of a breeding group in Charlotte County highlights the adaptability of Burmese pythons and underscores the urgent need for effective strategies to control their spread and protect Florida’s native ecosystems.

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