{"id":315427,"date":"2026-06-22T10:14:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T10:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/315427\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T10:14:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T10:14:13","slug":"see-photogenic-florida-hunters-pose-with-their-python-trophies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/315427\/","title":{"rendered":"See photogenic Florida hunters pose with their python ‘trophies’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Peak python hunting season is upon us in Florida and nothing underscores that more than the annual Florida Python Challenge.<\/p>\n

This year’s Florida Python Challenge<\/a> is scheduled to start on July 10 and it will last 10 days. There are numerous categories for the competition that rewards hunters with cash for their catches.<\/p>\n

But python hunting isn’t just a once a year situation in Florida. There are hunters in the field at all times, day and night and even in the winter when it is more challenging to find the invasive snakes that are disrupting the Everlglades ecosystem.<\/p>\n

A good example of this “all year long” approach to hunting pythons is the South Florida Water Management District’s Python Elimination Program<\/a>. It started in 2025 and almost halfway through 2026 there have been hunters recognized in different categories with cash prizes awarded.<\/p>\n

In May, for the first time, the SFWMD started rewarding hunters for eliminating python eggs.<\/p>\n

More: Florida Python Challenge 2026 dates are set. How 2025 champ scored the win<\/a><\/p>\n

The Naples Daily News and The News-Press have covered the SFWMD’s Python Elimination Program from the beginning and we have a photo gallery featuring the monthly winners for “most pythons eliminated.”<\/p>\n

See all of the photos from Python Elimination programPhotos of South Florida Water Management District Python Elimination Program winners<\/p>\n

1 of 17<\/p>\n

Megan De Angelis, right, was the overall winner (most pythons eliminated) for the South Florida Water Management District’s Python Elimination Program for May 2026.<\/p>\n

(Provided by South Florida Water Management District)SFWMD Python Elimination Program: What to know<\/p>\n

The Python Elimination Program is now accepting applications for new python removal agents.\u00a0Python removal agents work on designated lands across South Florida, including in Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier, Hendry, Lee, and Palm Beach counties.\u00a0Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we are unable to respond to every applicant.\u00a0We will contact you if you are selected.\u00a0Otherwise, your application will remain under consideration for when future positions become available.<\/p>\n

Apply Here<\/a><\/p>\n

Why is the District trying to remove pythons?<\/p>\n

Pythons are non-native, invasive snakes that are established and spreading throughout South Florida. The removal of pythons is crucial to preserve native wildlife and ecosystems.<\/p>\n

These large constrictors consume native animals, such as marsh rabbits, deer, wading birds and even alligators. Their aggressive predation has led to population declines of native mammals \u2013 robbing native predators, such as panthers, raptors, alligators, and bobcats of their primary food sources.<\/p>\n

Additionally, pythons are a vector for invasive parasites and pathogens, like\u00a0Raillietiella orientalis, a lung-dwelling pentastome that is typically lethal for native snakes.<\/p>\n

Mark H. Bickel is the Audience Development Director for The News-Press & Naples Daily News. Reach him by emailing mbickel@usatoday.com.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: How can you become a python hunter in Florida?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Peak python hunting season is upon us in Florida and nothing underscores that more than the annual Florida…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315428,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29,116511,50328,126444,807],"class_list":["post-315427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-florida-python-challenge","tag-hunters","tag-sfwmd","tag-south-florida"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315427","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=315427"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315427\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/315428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=315427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=315427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=315427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}