Burmese pythons spread beyond the Everglades as Florida's Python Challenge begins, offering $25,000 in prizes.

"There were a lot of little baby snakes just getting out of the nest."

It's important for new or wanna-be python hunters to understand the basics when it comes to eliminating the invasive creatures.

A giant snake once kept as an exotic pet can become a serious ecological problem when it enters the wrong environment. In the wetlands of southern Florida, Burmese pythons have established themselves far from their native range in Southeast Asia,

Burmese pythons are recognizable by more than their size. Hunters should be on the lookout for a telltale, arrow-shaped marking on the snake’s head, along with giraffe-like spots across its body and dark spots around its eyes. During the summer months, they’re most likely to be found sunning on levee banks or near trees.

Florida's Burmese pythons have reached a level of lore in Florida that perhaps no other animals have held in the state. They're the ultimate of swamp monsters. Pythons are gigantic predators from halfway around the world that have consumed a significant ...

Hunters working across the Florida Everglades removed a record four tons of invasive Burmese pythons in a single coordinated effort, a haul that reflects both the staggering scale of the infestation and the expanding reach of state and federal removal programs.

Florida researchers fitted GPS-collared opossums to track Burmese pythons from the inside — and the hidden biology of this tiny marsupial makes it the perfect secret weapon.