A Burmese python measuring 17ft 7in and weighing 164½lb has been caught and killed in Florida's Everglades National Park.
The python was the largest found in the Everglades on record and was pregnant with 87 eggs. Scientists said that showed just how pervasive the snakes, which are native to South-east Asia, have become in South Florida. "It means these snakes are surviving a long time in the wild," said Kenneth Krysko, a snake expert at the Florida Museum of Natural History. "There's nothing stopping them, and the native wildlife are in trouble."
Tens of thousands of Burmese pythons are believed to be living in the Everglades, where they thrive in the warm, humid climate. While many were apparently released by their owners, others may have escaped from pet shops during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and have been reproducing since.