Arya News - Last year’s winner was Taylor Stanberry, who removed 60 Burmese pythons in the record-breaking 2025 event
NEED TO KNOW
The 2026 Florida Python Challenge will run from July 10 through July 19
The event offers a $10,000 grand prize to whoever removes the most Burmese pythons from the Everglades
The annual challenge is a state effort to decrease the number of Burmese pythons in the Everglades and minimize the reptile’s threat to native wildlife
The Florida Python Challenge is returning.
The start of the annual event — which offers hunters far and wide the chance to compete for prizes for removing the titular invasive species, Burmese pythons, from the Florida Everglades — is officially right around the corner.
From midnight local time on July 10 through 5 p.m. on July 19, registered challenge participants can compete for prizes, including a prize for the longest snake captured and, of course, the grand prize of $10,000 for whoever removes the most Burmese pythons.
“We’re looking for people to help us conserve native wildlife in Florida through Burmese python control,” the event website teases. “Are you up to the Challenge?”
A python-catching demonstration before the Florida Python Challenge in 2020
Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty
Co-hosted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the Southwest Florida Water Management District, the 10-day hunt is part of a state effort to help decrease the number of the invasive snake species in the subtropical wetlands.
Burmese pythons — which are native to Southeast Asia — likely entered the wild as a result of the exotic pet trade, with more pythons released into the Everglades in 1992 after Hurricane Andrew allegedly destroyed a facility holding captive pythons, according to CBS News .
Although the invasive snakes aren’t venomous, they are considered a “threat to native wildlife,” per the FWC .
“Because of their large size, adult Burmese pythons have few predators, with humans being the exception,” the FWC website states. “They prey upon native species and may reduce their populations locally.”
Plus, the snakes reproduce rapidly. Burmese python females lay between 50 and 100 eggs at a time, which facilitates the rapid spread of the snakes, per the FWC.
Registration for the 2026 Florida Python Challenge is now open and requires a pre-competition training quiz and a $25 registration fee. Participants can compete as either a “Novice” or “Professional,” with separate prizes awarded for each category, according to the event website.
A python-catching demonstration before the 2020 Florida Python Challenge
Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty
The competition also requires snakes to be killed humanely and prohibits the use of guns, among other rules.
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Last year’s Florida Python Challenge grand prize winner was Taylor Stanberry, who removed 60 Burmese pythons .
In total, a record 294 invasive Burmese pythons were removed from the Everglades during the 2025 event, which saw 934 participants from 30 states and Canada take part in the challenge.
Read the original article on People