Florida team hauls in 18-foot, 215-pound Burmese python

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — A team of biologists recently hauled in the heaviest Burmese python ever captured in Florida. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida says the female python weighed 215-pounds, was nearly 18 feet long and had 122 developing eggs. The team used radio transmitters transplanted in male “scout” snakes to study python movements, breeding behaviors and habitat use. Project manager Ian Bartoszek says they used a scout snake named Dionysus — or Dion for short — in an area of the western Everglades. The state’s python removal program runs for two weeks in August. Participants compete for prizes, including $2,500 for capturing the most pythons.