"Python Challenge" Winding Down, 50 Killed
MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) - With less than a week to go in the month long "Python Challenge," more than 1,500 hunters have bagged 50 Burmese pythons in the Everglades.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which began on january 12th, will wrap up this weekend.
The invasive snakes killed in the Everglades are processed and logged by University of Florida researchers who examine each one hoping to learn more about the elusive species.
No one knows for sure how many pythons live in South Florida. Wildlife officials say eradicating pythons from the Everglades was never the goal of the challenge. Instead, they hoped to raise awareness about the snake's threat to native wildlife and the fragile Everglades ecosystem. The snake faces both state and federal bans.
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