HEY! All you sportsmen... And women.

[Windwalker]

It seems that Florida is on the verge of a new hunting season. And, I, for one, am all for it.

Python hunts? Florida mulls idea - Environment- msnbc.com

Back to real leather boots, and the meat should be good for something.

They are not native to this country, anywhere, and they thrive in the wet areas, even invading populated areas in the state.
If left alone, they won't just be in FL, but in other surrounding states as well.
Gators do enough damage, but they are a part of the environment, and figure in the balance of nature there.
These things are proven to pose a danger even to the gators.

Supervised hunts make a great deal of sense, in this case. A lone hunter could well find out that he/she becomes the hunted in a very short time. And, these snakes are quite capable of killing a human being, no matter how big the person is. Watch the video...

YouTube - SafariVideos.net Anaconda Attack Man

Part of what they show is a demonstration of how a snake may have come up behind a man in Burma, and killed him. When it was found, it could not get it's mouth around his shoulders, but it did break every bone in his body. At this point, the Everglades are not a safe place to go, even on a jet-ski. 30 foot pythons have been seen, and even with the hunting, I doubt they will vanish from FL. No matter how much they are hunted, they will never all be gotten.

[Jackrabbit379]

I heard about that on the news the other night. Snake bounty hunters down there in the Everglades. Sounds pretty serious. It sounded like the snakes were taking over, and they were trying to find guys to help control them.
I tell ya what...if I was huntin them things, I'd be in a helicopter with a big gun, with a good scope on it.

[Windwalker]

About a year ago, there was an article in the news that they were not going to try to get rid of them, because they've already gotten out of hand. But, they were going to try to control them. Well, now, it seems that even control is going to take some extreme measures. Of course, I'd settle for an ultralight and a bazooka... Or a grenade launcher.

The thing about hunting snakes is that they can be very quiet. They can lay just under the lilly pads, and you won't see them. But, walk by, and they can feel the vibration of your footsteps. And, if they want to, they can move faster than a human can run. So, a novice could well be attacked from the rear, completely unaware. And, once it sinks it's teeth into you, it only takes about 2 seconds for it to start wrapping coils around you for the "hug" of your life. The amount of PSI they can put on you amounts to a full-sized school bus resting on one square foot of your chest. In about 7 seconds, they're snapping every bone in your body.

You have to wonder... Some of the kids that have disappeared in some parts of the state... Were they abducted or were they eaten? They're doing a lot of damage to the balance of nature, and coming out of the swamp into populated areas. Pets are disappearing. And, when you figure that a 24 foot python can eat a baby hippo, what chance does a kid have?

Getting in on a hunt could be an experience to talk about for a lifetime, but I really think I'll pass on this one.

[Snowman7]

I might hunt and shoot one from an air boat but I aint gettin out and walking around in that water.

[Jackrabbit379]

I might hunt and shoot one from an air boat but I aint gettin out and walking around in that water.

I wouldn't be caught dead walking around in it either..
Snakes can move in water, and not make a sound.

[ironeagle_2006]

Give me about 200 Giunea Pigs each with 2ozs of C4 implanted into them with a remote controlled Detonter on each one. Then as they get eaten Press the PLUNGER for that one. BOOM ONE LESS SNAKE. Wonder how far a Python will fly when its guts go BOOM.

[Windwalker]

There's an animal control agent in Corral Gables, FL that has been removing snakes from people's back yards at a rate of 2 to 3 a week, last year. This year, it's up to 4 or 5 a week. We're not talking about anything small, either. Anywhere from 15 to 25 feet in length. And, a 10 foot snake has been known to kill an adult.

Last time I was on US-41 between Naples and Miami, someone had run over one on the road. The tail was still moving, so it had not been long. I didn't stop and measure it, but I'm willing to bet it was over 12 feet. By the time you start seeing things getting run over on the hiway, there's a population of them.

I don't know if I would try to swerve to hit one, but I sure would not try to miss one if I saw it. And, by the way... If you want to own one, I might suggest that you get one soon. It won't be long, and it will be illegal to import an "invasive species" like them. Just like the "Northern Snakehead Fish".