{"id":310783,"date":"2026-06-17T19:02:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T19:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/310783\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T19:02:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T19:02:17","slug":"florida-desperately-wants-to-eradicate-its-pythons-so-why-was-this-man-fined-for-removing-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/310783\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Desperately Wants to Eradicate Its Pythons. So Why Was This Man Fined for Removing One?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yatir Nitzany of Miami was riding his bike through Everglades National Park on April 1 when he saw a 10-foot-long Burmese python slithering across the path. There were children nearby, which raised safety concerns, but Nitzany was also worried for other reasons. As he explained in a Facebook post<\/a> last week, he \u201cfelt a genuine obligation\u201d to do something about the snake, which still had a bulge in its body from swallowing something \u2014 most likely a native critter.<\/p>\n

After all, the Burmese python is Enemy No. 1<\/a> in the eyes of Florida wildlife managers. These giant invasive snakes are devastating the Everglades ecosystem by eating through the native food web<\/a> without any natural predators to keep them in check. The state is now paying contractors<\/a> to remove the snakes, and it hosts an annual hunting competition<\/a> to raise awareness about the invasive python problem. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission allows (and even encourages<\/a>) the public to humanely kill them when possible, with no bag limits or seasons and no hunting licenses required.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Natziny said he caught the snake \u201cnot only for the safety of the park and the diminishing native life that has been devastated by the invasive python, but also because there were small children present nearby on the path.\u201d Photo via Facebook<\/p>\n

So, Nitzany wrangled and grabbed the python while onlookers stood back and watched. Then he flagged down a tram driver, who reportedly told Nitzany, \u201cGood job,\u201d and advised him to hold onto the snake until a park ranger could arrive.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut instead of a \u2018thank you,\u2019 the moment the ranger arrived, he slapped me with a $180 fine because Everglades National Park is federal land!\u201d Nitzany wrote in his post. \u201cThe ranger took the snake, eventually euthanized it, and left me with a big fine!\u201d<\/p>\n

Nitzany was cited for handling wildlife without a permit<\/a>. The NPS gave him the option of paying the $180 fee and avoiding a court appearance.<\/p>\n

Out of principle, Nitzany chose instead to challenge the citation in court. During the weeks leading up to the hearing, he was contacted multiple times by NPS officials, who threatened him with a federal bench warrant if he failed to appear in court.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Yatir Nitzany with the python he was cited for capturing. He says he felt a \u201cgenuine obligation\u201d to remove the invasive snake, and that he\u2019d \u201cdo it again in a heartbeat.\u201d Photo via Facebook<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a clear scare tactic to force me into paying because they knew that enforcing a fine on someone for catching an invasive python can result in terrible publicity.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Friday Nitzany attended his hearing in federal court. He was joined there by supporter Ron Magill<\/a>, a photographer, TV personality, and wildlife conservationist, who said he thought it was absurd for the federal agency to cite Nitzany under the circumstances.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis man did a good thing, and now he\u2019s being given a $180 citation for it? It\u2019s wrong,\u201d Magill told a local news channel<\/a> Friday. \u201cAt the end of the day, for me, it\u2019s common sense. Unfortunately, it\u2019s not too common anymore these days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

The case was ultimately dismissed in federal court, as the prosecutor said the ticket was written incorrectly. Photo via Facebook<\/p>\n

According to both Nitzany and NBC-6<\/a>, the federal court had dismissed the case before Nitzany even walked into the courtroom. A prosecutor said the ticket was written incorrectly.<\/p>\n

Read Next: What It\u2019s Like to Get Dragged Through a Florida Swamp by a 200-Pound Python<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMy goal now is to do what I can to change this law,\u201d Magill said in a separate interview. \u201cTo make sure there is a caveat in this law so that people like Yatir aren\u2019t punished for doing the right thing for the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nitzany, for his part, says that even if federal laws remain unchanged, he would do the same thing again in a heartbeat.<\/p>\n

\u201cI messed myself up by asking for help,\u201d Nitzany told reporters outside the courtroom Friday. \u201cIf I could have done things over again, I would have probably killed it and thrown it in the bushes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Yatir Nitzany of Miami was riding his bike through Everglades National Park on April 1 when he saw…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":310784,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[12509,110435,1292,28,30,29,129582],"class_list":["post-310783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-burmese-python","tag-everglades-national-park","tag-facebook","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-yatir-nitzany"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=310783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/310784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=310783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=310783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}