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A team of snake trackers discovered a 500-pound ball of huge snakes squirming in a Florida marsh. The Miami Herald revealed this discovery happened on February 21 on public land near Naples, where scientists stumbled upon a 7-foot-wide mound of 11 Burmese pythons.
Reporters said this is part of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida's longtime operation to remove these invasive snakes from the state's ecosystems. The huge ball of reptiles, which contained a 16-foot-long python, is one of their biggest catches to date.
"It’s probably most people’s worst nightmare, but for us, it’s a good day. It’s a win for native wildlife,” Conservancy biologist Ian Bartoszek told the newspaper. “It was a moment to savor, not so much as a victory but as a really interesting observation on snake behavior most people will never get to see."
The intimidating ball is a mating ritual between the snakes, and the ball of pythons was one of two the scientists found that day.
"Most would say it’s creepy, but it was creepy cool to see," Bartoszek said.
Burmese pythons are one of the largest snake species in the world and are native to Southeast Asia. They arrived in Florida in the 1970s through pet trades and now lurk in South Florida environments, threatening native wildlife. It's legal to capture and humanely kill pythons without a license or permit, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.