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Florida Kingsnake (Lampropeltis floridana) consumes a juvenile Burmese Python (Python molurus bivitattus) in southern Florida

Peter F. Crawford·Jose A. Torres·Jacquelyn C. Guzy·Andrea Faye Currylow·Lisa Marie McBride·Gretchen Erika Anderson·Matthew F. McCollister·Christina M. Romagosa·Amy A. Yackel Adams·Kristen Hart
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Abstract

The Burmese python (Python molurus bivittatus) is an invasive constrictor established across southern Florida. These snakes are dietary generalists with large home ranges and broad habitat requirements and their introduction has had severe impacts on native species and ecosystems in the region. We describe the first observation of a Florida kingsnake (Lampropeltis floridana) that consumed a hatchling Burmese python.

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Reptiles & AmphibiansArticle
90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 24.8873077357417° to 26.785704738544794° latitude; -82.11626012922294° to -79.56743200422333° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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Peter F. Crawford, Jose A. Torres, Jacquelyn C. Guzy, Andrea Faye Currylow, Lisa Marie McBride, Gretchen Erika Anderson, Matthew F. McCollister, Christina M. Romagosa, Amy A. Yackel Adams, Kristen Hart. 2023-10-18. Florida Kingsnake (Lampropeltis floridana) consumes a juvenile Burmese Python (Python molurus bivitattus) in southern Florida. https://doi.org/10.17161/randa.v30i1.19971

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USGS2023

Maximum clutch size of an invasive Burmese Python (Python bivittatus) in Florida, USA

Native to southeastern Asia, the Burmese Python (Python bivittatus Kuhl 1820) is an invasive species established in southern Florida (Snow et al. 2007; Krysko et al. 2016; Krysko et al. 2019). Pythons are documented as having negative effects on the Greater Everglades Ecosystem and they have proven to be a complex problem for managers trying to control populations (Guzy et al. 2023). This species can move long distances (Pittman et al. 2014; Hart et al. 2015), use diverse habitats (Hart et al. 2015; Walters et al. 2016; Bartoszek et al. 2021a), consume a wide range of vertebrate prey items (Romagosa et al. 2022; Guzy et al. 2023 and citations therein), and has few documented predators (Bartoszek et al. 2021b; Mccollister et al. 2021; Currylow et al. 2023). Another factor that likely has contributed to the success of Burmese Pythons as an invasive species is their reproductive output (Reed et al. 2012). Though data are limited, clutch sizes of pythons in Florida range from 22–84 (mean = 49; see Currylow et al. 2022a and citations therein). Herein we report, to the best of our knowledge, the largest number of eggs in a single wild python nest recorded to date in Florida.

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