What to Know
- The female snake that measured at 17 and a half feet in length and weighed in at 120 pounds.
- Hunters are paid in four South Florida counties – Broward, Collier, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach – to find the snakes.
A record setting catch took place this week when a Homestead man captured a massive Burmese python in the Everglades.
The South Florida Water Management District released photos of the catch from late Monday night in Miami-Dade County, showing Kyle Penniston with the female snake that measured at 17 and a half feet in length and weighed in at 120 pounds.
Penniston’s catch, the 235th he has as part of the agency’s Python Elimination Program, is the 1,859th capture made in total. Miami native Brian Hargrove has caught the most thus far with 257.
"Just six months after eliminating the first 1,000 pythons from District lands, this program is about to double that total because of a true team effort," project manager Mike Kirkland said in a statement.
Hunters are paid in four South Florida counties – Broward, Collier, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach – to find the snakes, including bonuses based on the length of the animal as well as nests with eggs in an effort to help protect the natural wildlife in the area.
