Python Challenge
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the annual prize-winning hunt for invasive Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades will begin Aug. 5. The 10-foot female python snake he and a few other were holding did not say anything. The snakes have virtually no natural enemies in the Everglades and have decimated native populations of mammals, birds and other reptiles. Prizes include $2,500 for the most pythons captured and $1,500 for the longest snake. Last year, the first-prize winner captured 223 pythons, while the $1,500 winner bagged a snake that was more than 15 feet long. DeSantis said this year’s state budget includes $3 million specifically for python removal in the Everglades, including technology such as infrared sensors to locate the hard-to-see snakes in the wild. A key point of the snake event, the governor said, is to raise awareness about the threat and enable people to take part. “We view this as a challenge,” he said. “We really wanted to supercharge those efforts.” People must register to participate and complete an online training course for the event, which typically draws hundreds from across the country. Last year’s “Python Challenge” involved more than 600 people from 25 states
Amy Siewe is a Professional Python Hunter and one of only 15 women licensed by the state. Amy is contracted by the South Florida Water Management District to capture and euthanize the invasive Burmese Pythons that are now the apex predators. “I go out into the swamp, mostly at night, and capture these pythons (that can grow up to 20 feet long) by hand. Why do I do this? The short answer is that I have always had an obsessive fascination with snakes. Because I’m not afraid of pythons and I have years of experience with many species of snakes and reptiles, I figured that this was a great opportunity to use my passion to actually make a difference in the world.” Amy has caught over 300 pythons, won 2nd place in the python bowl, and has been featured on the news, podcasts, magazine articles, and documentaries. “The biggest python I caught was 17’3, 110 pounds, and I caught her by myself!” The record for the longest Burmese Python caught in Florida is 18’9”. Amy has her own product line of leather products and makes the only Apple watch bands that are made of Florida python skin.
Constricted Humor
I advertised a python for sale in the paper a man called and asked, “What size is it?”
I replied, “It’s quite big.”
“How many feet?” he asked.
“None, it’s a snake…”
What’s worse than a box full of snakes?
A box that was SUPPOSED to be full of snakes.
A group of cows is called a herd; what do you call a group of snakes?
A tangle.
My pet snake was sneezing, so I gave it a Claritin. Now it won’t speak to me!
I shouldn’t have given him an anti-hiss-tamine.
June 21st Birthdays
1999 – Natalie Alyn Lind, 1921 – Jane Russel, 1953 – Benazir Bhutto, 1985 – Michelle Wolf
1979 – Chris Pratt, 1957 – Berke Breathed, 1986 – Michael Malarkey, 1947 – Wade Phillips