MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A python’s last big meal in the Florida Everglades turned out to be quite the feast.
The reptile apparently bit off more than he could chew, (or swallow), as scientists found a 5-foot alligator inside the python.
Scientists at a Florida lab who inspected the snake say they couldn’t believe their eyes when they performed a necropsy on the python to find the alligator mostly intact.
Sadly, neither animal survived the meal, but scientists say this is one day on the job they’ll never forget.
Burmese pythons are invasive to the area and have been a serious threat to native wildlife in the Florida Everglades.
In Florida, it is legal for members of the public to capture and humanely kill nonnative reptiles, such as the Burmese python.
Visit the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s website to learn more about pythons and how they are affecting South Florida’s ecosystem.