MIAMI (AP) — Wildlife officials hope chilly temperatures in South Florida help keep another large snake from making a home in the Everglades.
For the last five years, wildlife authorities from multiple agencies have raced to keep northern African pythons from spreading beyond a small Miami-area colony.
Officials don't want the aggressive snakes also known as rock pythons to slither into the Everglades, where Burmese pythons are blamed for decimating the population of native mammals.
Neither python species is native to Florida, where they have no natural enemies. Authorities have banned keeping both species as pets.
On Thursday, biologists and wildlife officials will survey a swath of western Miami-Dade County for rock pythons. They can be easier to spot in colder weather when the cold-blooded reptiles seek warmth in open, sunny areas.
