Burmese python: it was released by mistake, but the snake adapted (8 photos)

A real star among snakes, a titan jostling with an anaconda for the pedestal of the largest legless reptile, a conqueror of new continents... and has never appeared as a guest. Let's correct this misunderstanding and talk about the Burmese python - a threat to the American ecosystem!





So this is what touched you underwater as a child...

Wait, what a storm in America?! The reptile's homeland is on a completely different continent. The python lives in India and a little in Southeast Asia, that is, exactly on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. There was no way he could end up in the USA. That is, until the Americans decided that the Burmese python was a wonderful pet!



How wonderful it is when you don’t have to hunt prey, but she brings you into her home herself!

Only domestic snakes quickly gained freedom after growing to 4-5 meters and eating 40-50 kilos. Former owners, in a panic, released their pets into the wild across all US states. And in Florida, reptiles mistook the local jungle for their home! Thus, since 2008, the population in America has become stable - 30,000 individuals.





Between 1996 and 2008, more than 90,000 pythons were exported from Southeast Asia to America!

The fauna of the southern state was defenseless. In India, Burmese pythons were already at the top of the food chain, and in Florida the snakes ended up at a buffet resort. The snake beautifully entered the sinful life of the local inhabitants and broke the food chains built over thousands of years.



Mukhtar, how much life with the police has changed you...

The situation got so bad that in the Everglades National Park, Burmese pythons wiped out 99% of the possum, raccoon and rabbit population. Following the prey, predators disappeared - coyotes, lynxes and even cougars - all the meat-eating mammals of Florida were on the verge of starvation. The only one who did not cave in to the invader was the alligator. Reptiles periodically exchange pleasantries by eating each other.



Oh no! A leather cord got tangled on a leather log!

The snake was able to turn an entire ecosystem upside down thanks to a combination of strength, size and cunning tactics. Having competent camouflage, the python quietly lies in a layer of bedding and waits for unwary warm-blooded animals that are just asking to be caught in its mouth. All that remains is to jump out of cover in time, grab the juicy barrel with your teeth and arrange a deadly hug, after which the already lifeless carcass is sent into the mouth.



This snake came to take revenge on all the tops that grabbed the unfortunate children by the barrel. Thank you!

Further expansion of the snake is hampered by frost. Pythons, not accustomed to cold weather, are simply unable to go beyond the resort temperature of 26°C. At least for now. In 2018, researchers discovered that pythons are slowly adapting to winter at the genetic level. Genes that increase metabolism have appeared in the DNA of snakes. And the higher the metabolic rate, the more adapted the body is to cold temperatures.



Of course, I am very pleased that you carry me in your arms. But that doesn't mean I'll stop destroying your ecosystem.

The behavior of Burmese pythons has also changed: in winter, when frost sets in at +12°C (!), the reptiles lie down in a secluded corner: a hollow or hole. But after the “frost” comes the time of warmth and love. Despite the fact that pythons are cold-blooded, they are not at all cold-blooded towards their partners and children.



Wow, what a big baked egg!

In March-April, reptiles go on dates. The male and female spend entire hours together. And after the interweaving of two destinies (and snakes), the reptile lays a clutch of 15-30 eggs. The expectant mother carefully wraps the ring around her, actively contracting her muscles. This way she maintains the temperature around the eggs slightly above the ambient temperature. The baby snakes will spend 2-3 months in the arms of their mother. And then the newborn children are immediately ready for work, defense and tyranny of the surrounding fauna, so they are left to their own devices.