Myths about the size and predatory nature of the python have haunted science for a long time. Among the most latent doubts is its immense size, since throughout history it has been compared to the anaconda and even among the various species of python.
However, recently biologists may have captured the largest python so far seen in the United States. To give us an idea, an anaconda can measure up to 11 meters long and weigh about 250kg.
In the case of a reticulated python, it can measure up to 12 meters long and its weight varies depending on its species. What the team of biologists discovered was a Burmese python, a female that weighed more than 97 kilos and was about 5.4 meters long.
The female was found in the Picayune Strand State Forest and is the largest Burmese python ever recorded in all of Florida, so far. Researchers kept her in a laboratory after her death to discover much more about the species.
When performing the necropsy, they discovered that 122 eggs were hidden in its body, a record amount for a python of this species. Likewise, researchers took various measurements of its head and the entire body of the snake. His head alone measured about 15 centimeters.
A huge and unusual python in Florida
Unfortunately, the discovery of this species is not a good sign for that state, since they are not native to the nation. In fact, these snakes are native to Southeast Asia and arrived as pets through trade.
However, the owners of these animals began to observe a rapid multiplication of the specimens and decided to gradually release them into the wild. Now, the pythons found in Florida can grow immensely like this female and pose a great risk to the population.