Non-native Burmese pythons killing off native species in the Florida Everglades

• Tweet
• 
• 

• Tweet

Scientists suspect that tens of thousands of non-native Burmese pythons have invaded the Everglades, wreaking havoc on the natural ecosystem and its native species. Whether they were dumped by pet owners when they got too large (they can reach lengths of 26 feet) or simply escaped from exotic pet stores during Hurricane Andrew in 1992, they are now entrenched and reproducing.

The pythons are said to be eating everything from raccoons and opossums to deer, bobcats and even the occasional alligator. A National Academy of Sciences sight study shows that, compared to studies in the nineties, raccoon and opossum sightings are down by 99 percent; white-tailed deer sightings are down by 94 percent; and bobcat sightings are down by 89 percent — and no rabbits of foxes were spotted at all.

Watch the video, which first aired on Fox News on January 31, 2012, below: