USGS scientists continue to conduct research on invasive Burmese pythons in Everglades National Park and other DOI lands in South Florida to aid in the management of these large, voracious constrictor snakes. Our research on Burmese pythons has focused on developing and testing methods for detection and control, predicting potential range of the species in the U.S., understanding thermal tolerances and conducting a risk assessment of pythons to humans.
Burmese Python Research
Biology, Impacts and Control of Invasive Reptiles in the Everglades
Ecology and Control of Invasive Reptiles in Florida
Mentoring the next generation: USGS, NPS, and University of Florida Cooperative Research Unit Invasive Reptile Intern Program
USGS Everglades Research Office - Florida
USGS Coordinated Burmese Python Research Strategy for South Florida (FY21 – FY27)
Using Scout Burmese Pythons and Detector Dogs to Protect Endangered Species in the Florida Keys
Understanding Greater Everglades Mammal Communities within and adjacent to the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Applications of Advanced Tracking and Modeling Tools with Burmese Pythons across South Florida's Landscape
Habitat Selection of the Burmese Python in the Florida Everglades
Environmental DNA (eDNA) Sampling Improves Occurrence and Detection Estimates of Invasive Burmese Pythons and Other Constrictor Snakes in Florida
Investigating Prey of Burmese Pythons using eDNA Methods
Cruising to Improve the Detection of Burmese Pythons in Everglades National Park
Recent data (2020-2022) related to USGS Burmese python research are listed below. A complete listing of USGS Burmese python data is available from the button below.
Droplet digital PCR data for environmental DNA surveys of Burmese pythons in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem
Photo-documented sequences from 01 Jun 2021 - 30 Aug 2021 showing novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida, USA, bobcat and Burmese python
Hatchling Growth Experiment Dataset from Invasive Burmese Pythons Captured in 2015 in Southern Florida
Florida physiological and morphological data from wild and recently captive Python bivittatus 2018-2019
Burmese python acceleration and location data, Everglades National Park, 2010 - 2012
Data from Burmese Pythons swabbed for the presence of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces in southwest Florida
Recent publications (2020-2022) related to USGS Burmese python research are listed below. A complete listing of USGS Burmese python publications is available from the button below.
Egg retention in wild-caught Python bivittatus in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Florida, USA
Face-off: Novel depredation and nest defense behaviors between an invasive and a native predator in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Florida, USA
Clutch may predict growth of hatchling Burmese pythons better than food availability or sex
Environmental DNA surveys of Burmese pythons in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem
Genome-wide SNP analysis reveals multiple paternity in Burmese pythons invasive to the Greater Florida Everglades
Native mammals lack resilience to invasive generalist predator
Spatial ecology of invasive Burmese pythons in southwestern Florida
Native mammalian predators can depredate adult Burmese Pythons in Florida
Using enclosed Y-mazes to assess chemosensory behavior in reptiles
Highly competent native snake hosts extend the range of an introduced parasite beyond its invasive Burmese python host
Low-level detection of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces on Burmese Pythons in southwest Florida, with confirmation of the pathogen on co-occurring native snakes
Estimating detection probability for Burmese Pythons with few detections and zero recapture events
- Overview
USGS scientists continue to conduct research on invasive Burmese pythons in Everglades National Park and other DOI lands in South Florida to aid in the management of these large, voracious constrictor snakes. Our research on Burmese pythons has focused on developing and testing methods for detection and control, predicting potential range of the species in the U.S., understanding thermal tolerances and conducting a risk assessment of pythons to humans.
Burmese Python ResearchFilter Total Items: 19Biology, Impacts and Control of Invasive Reptiles in the Everglades
Invasive species are considered to be second only to habitat degradation in terms of negative impacts on the Earth’s ecosystems, and our scientists make up a significant proportion of the global expertise in the rapidly-growing problem of invasive reptiles.Ecology and Control of Invasive Reptiles in Florida
This project involves ongoing development of tools for the detection and control of invasive reptiles in Florida, with an emphasis on Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus) and Black and white tegu lizards (Salvator merianae). The goals are to reduce the risk of reptile invasions into, and impacts on, high-value resources such as Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, and the...Mentoring the next generation: USGS, NPS, and University of Florida Cooperative Research Unit Invasive Reptile Intern Program
Invasive reptiles like the Burmese python (Python bivittatus) and Black-and-White Tegu Lizard (Tupinambis merianae) are exerting tremendous harm on Everglades ecosystems, but these problematic species present an excellent opportunity to engage the next generation in science. Since entering into an agreement with Everglades National Park in late 2013, the Invasive Species Science Branch of the U.S...USGS Everglades Research Office - Florida
The Daniel Beard Center in Everglades National Park provides the base for most of the field work done on the control of invasive reptiles by USGS Fort Collins Science Center staff. The team works in Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge, and other parts of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem focusing on, among other species of concern...USGS Coordinated Burmese Python Research Strategy for South Florida (FY21 – FY27)
Wetland and Aquatic Research Center and Fort Collins Science Center are coordinating a long-term, landscape-scale Burmese python research strategy for South Florida.Using Scout Burmese Pythons and Detector Dogs to Protect Endangered Species in the Florida Keys
WARC researchers are addressing an urgent need to identify specific habitat use of pythons on Key Largo, FL.Understanding Greater Everglades Mammal Communities within and adjacent to the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
WARC Researchers are using a variety of methods to assess mammal communities across the Greater Everglades.Applications of Advanced Tracking and Modeling Tools with Burmese Pythons across South Florida's Landscape
Researchers will determine movement rates and habitat-use patterns of pythons across the South Florida landscape by conducting a telemetry study tracking pythons simultaneously in several locationsHabitat Selection of the Burmese Python in the Florida Everglades
Researchers plotted locations of radio-tagged pythons to create a habitat suitability model.Environmental DNA (eDNA) Sampling Improves Occurrence and Detection Estimates of Invasive Burmese Pythons and Other Constrictor Snakes in Florida
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is organismal DNA that can be found in the environment. Environmental DNA originates from cellular material shed by organisms (via skin, excrement, etc.) into aquatic or terrestrial environments that can be sampled and monitored using new molecular methods. Such methodology is important for the early detection of invasive species as well as the detection of rare and...Investigating Prey of Burmese Pythons using eDNA Methods
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is organismal DNA that can be found in the environment. Environmental DNA originates from cellular material shed by organisms (via skin, excrement, etc.) into aquatic or terrestrial environments that can be sampled and monitored using new molecular methods. Such methodology is important for the early detection of invasive species as well as the detection of rare and...Cruising to Improve the Detection of Burmese Pythons in Everglades National Park
It is not uncommon to see researchers cruising around Everglades National Park (ENP) on what has been a routine basis for the past ten months. Every evening, interns pack into a Chevy Volt for their shift assisting the U.S. Geological Survey in conducting Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus) nighttime surveillance through observational surveys. This effort to detect non-native snakes, namely... - Data
Recent data (2020-2022) related to USGS Burmese python research are listed below. A complete listing of USGS Burmese python data is available from the button below.
Droplet digital PCR data for environmental DNA surveys of Burmese pythons in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem
Environmental DNA water samples were collected in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem between May 20-22, 2019 and analyzed to estimate Burmese python (Python bivittatus) occurrence. Twenty-eight sites were sampled in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, with 5 field replicate samples per site, for a total of 140 water samples collected. Python eDNA was detected at 25 of the 28 sampling sites using DroplPhoto-documented sequences from 01 Jun 2021 - 30 Aug 2021 showing novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida, USA, bobcat and Burmese python
Entire photo-documented sequence from 01 June 2021-09 September 2021, including novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida - the native bobcat (Lynx rufus) and the invasive Burmese python (Python bivittatus). A bobcat depredated an unguarded Burmese python nest and subsequently the python exhibited nest defense behavior following the return of both animals to the nest. FirHatchling Growth Experiment Dataset from Invasive Burmese Pythons Captured in 2015 in Southern Florida
This dataset contains information about 58 hatchling Burmese pythons collected in 2015 from an invasive population in southern Florida. These hatchlings were used in an experiment that assessed the effects of food availability, clutch, and sex on their growth in captivity. The hatchlings were collected as eggs from the nests of two wild pythons, assigned to High or Low feeding treatments, and theiFlorida physiological and morphological data from wild and recently captive Python bivittatus 2018-2019
This dataset provides morphological and blood-derived physiological data from invasive Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus) captured in Florida. Data were collected on pythons at capture in the field and in varying lengths of time in captivity. Samples were collected immediately at handling (baseline) and 1 hour post-restraint. Physiological data include circulating corticosterone hormone levels, fBurmese python acceleration and location data, Everglades National Park, 2010 - 2012
The dataset contains 3 components: (1) acceleration data logger (ADL) data, (2) GPS location data, and (3) body temperature data. We have ADL data from pythons in captivity (N = 2) and in free-ranging snakes (N=4). We have GPS data for 3 out of 4 free-ranging snakes. We have body temperature data for all 4 free-ranging snakes.Data from Burmese Pythons swabbed for the presence of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces in southwest Florida
The size and sex of each of the Burmese pythons swabbed in this study for the SFD-causing (snake fungal disease) Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola pathogen is given along with the real time PCR swab result. - Publications
Recent publications (2020-2022) related to USGS Burmese python research are listed below. A complete listing of USGS Burmese python publications is available from the button below.
Egg retention in wild-caught Python bivittatus in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Florida, USA
Retention of eggs in oviducts beyond the normal oviposition period is a common problem for captive reptiles, but the occurrence of egg retention in wild populations is largely unknown. The Burmese python (Python [molurus] bivittatus; Kühl 1820) is an oviparous snake native to south-eastern Asia that is now established in southern Florida. From 2011–2019, invasive Burmese pythons were opportunisticFace-off: Novel depredation and nest defense behaviors between an invasive and a native predator in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Florida, USA
We describe several photo-documented novel interactions between intraguild predators in southern Florida—the native bobcat (Lynx rufus) and the invasive Burmese python (Python bivittatus). Over several days we documented a bobcat's depredation of an unguarded python nest and subsequent python nest defense behavior following the return of both animals to the nest. This is the first documentation ofClutch may predict growth of hatchling Burmese pythons better than food availability or sex
Identifying which environmental and genetic factors affect growth pattern phenotypes can help biologists predict how organisms distribute finite energy resources in response to varying environmental conditions and physiological states. This information may be useful for monitoring and managing populations of cryptic, endangered, and invasive species. Consequently, we assessed the effects of food aEnvironmental DNA surveys of Burmese pythons in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem
Improving the probability of detecting invasive giant snakes is vital for the management of emerging or established populations. Burmese pythons occupy thousands of square kilometers of mostly inaccessible habitats in Florida. Environmental DNA (eDNA) methods have been shown to be time and cost effective in a number of systems and may be preferable to traditional detection methods for constrictorGenome-wide SNP analysis reveals multiple paternity in Burmese pythons invasive to the Greater Florida Everglades
Reproductive strategies are an essential component of invasion ecology that influence invasion success and rates of population growth. Burmese Pythons (Python bivittatus) are large constrictor snakes that were introduced to the Greater Everglades Ecosystem of southern Florida, USA, from Asia. Since their introduction, these giant constrictors have spread throughout wetlands of southern Florida whiNative mammals lack resilience to invasive generalist predator
Invasive predators have caused catastrophic declines in native wildlife across the globe. Though research has focused on the initial establishment, rapid growth, and spread of invasive predators, our understanding of prey resilience to established invasive predators remains limited. As a direct result of invasive Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivittatus), medium- to large-bodied native mammals dSpatial ecology of invasive Burmese pythons in southwestern Florida
Understanding the spatial ecology of an invasive species is critical for designing effective control programs. Determining and quantifying home range estimates and habitat associations can streamline targeted removal efforts for wide-ranging, cryptic animals. The Burmese python (Python bivittatus) is a large-bodied constrictor snake with an established and expanding invasive population in southernNative mammalian predators can depredate adult Burmese Pythons in Florida
Invasive predators are of conservation concern because they contribute to species declines and extinctions worldwide. Interactions of native fauna and invasive predators can be complex, but understanding these relationships can guide management and restoration. Observations of these interactions are especially important for invaders with low detectability like Python bivittatus (Burmese Python) whUsing enclosed Y-mazes to assess chemosensory behavior in reptiles
Reptiles utilize a variety of environmental cues to inform and drive animal behavior such as chemical scent trails produced by food or conspecifics. Decrypting the scent-trailing behavior of vertebrates, particularly invasive species, enables the discovery of cues that induce exploratory behavior and can aid in the development of valuable basic and applied biological tools. However, pinpointing beHighly competent native snake hosts extend the range of an introduced parasite beyond its invasive Burmese python host
Invasive Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus ) have introduced a nonnative pentastomid parasite (Raillietiella orientalis ) to southern Florida that has spilled over to infect native snakes. However, the extent of spillover, regarding prevalence and intensity, is unknown. We examined native snakes (n = 523) and invasive pythons (n = 1003) collected from Florida to determine the degree to which paLow-level detection of SFD-causing Ophidiomyces on Burmese Pythons in southwest Florida, with confirmation of the pathogen on co-occurring native snakes
Snake fungal disease (SFD), or ophidiomycosis, is caused by the fungus Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola (Allender et al. 2015; Lorch et al. 2015). SFD is widespread across wild populations in the eastern United States (Lorch et al. 2016) and is known to infect more than 30 species of snake in North America and Europe (Lorch et al. 2016; Franklinos et al. 2017). No known phylogenetic or ecological patternEstimating detection probability for Burmese Pythons with few detections and zero recapture events
Detection has been a long-standing challenge to monitoring populations of cryptic herpetofauna, which often have detection probabilities that are closer to zero than one. Burmese Pythons (Python bivittatus =Python molurus bivittatus), a recent invader in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem of Florida, are cryptic snakes that have long periods of inactivity. In addition, management actions such as rem