87 Burmese Pythons Caught In FL Everglades By Top Python Hunter

SOUTH FLORIDA — Python hunter Aaron Mann caught 87 invasive Burmese pythons in the wild in South Florida in July.

That’s more than anyone else participating in the South Florida Water Management District’s new incentive program, earning Mann a $1,000 bonus, the district shared in a Facebook post.

The hunter with the previous highest number of eliminated pythons in a month was Kyle Perry, who captured 28 in January, the Naple Daily News said. He’s also the two-time winner since the program started.

The district started the bonus program this year for python removal agents who are already part of its official program.

Agents who are part of the program are paid hourly based on the location where they’re hunting for pythons, ranging from $13 to $30 an hour for up to 10 billable hours a day, according to the program’s website.

In addition to the $1,000 bonus for most pythons caught per month, the district offers other incentives.

Python hunters receive bonuses based on length — $50 for a snake’s first four feet and $25 a foot for every foot after that.

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They also receive $200 for any verified, active python nest and are paid $50 for the documented catch and release of any telemetered research python.

Areas included in the program include the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, stormwater treatment areas, Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area, Big Cypress National Preserve, Fakahatchee Strand State Park, Picayune Strand State Forest, Collier Seminole State Park, Everglades National Park, Biscayne National Park, John Pennekamp and Dagny S. Johnson State Parks, and Key Deer National Wildlife Refuge.

Mann, who joined SFWMD’s program in June, was joined on his July hunts by his fiancée, Christina Kraus.

In addition to the 87 pythons removed from the wild last month — including a 14-foot snake found crossing the road near Port of the Islands resort in Naples — Mann also found three nests, he wrote in a Facebook post.

“And to top it all off, on the first of the year we made a goal of 100 pythons in 2025 we got (No.) 100 on July 29,” he wrote.

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