The Giant Snake - An Educational Exhibit

01/29/2021

People may be hardwired to alert to the sight of a snake. One scientist theories that this neurological reaction may even be what set primates on the path to more complex brain function. However, your brain doesn't make you scared of snakes:

"But even if we have neurons dedicated to detecting snakes, that doesn’t mean that we have to be terrified of them. Once these neurons become active, they may trigger different responses, depending on our experiences with the serpentine world.

“People who like snakes are experiencing the same visual thing as people who hate snakes,” said Dr. Isbell."

Scientists have discovered that certain neurons in the brain, in a region known as the pulvinar, respond only to snakes.

01/26/2021

This is a video of a night with a python hunting team in South Florida. They had a massive haul that evening, including a 152 pounder they found.

Snakes caught in early December of 2020.I am an assistant for Kevin, the snakeaholic. He is part of a python removal team created to remove invasive Burmese ...

01/22/2021

It's commonly been thought that constrictors squeeze their prey to suffocate them. This was put to the test and found to not be true! They are actually halting blood circulation.

Warning: this short video does show a snake biting an unconscious rat.

Understanding how a boa constrictor’s grip is deadly.

01/16/2021

One of the most interesting things about snakes is their ability to go weeks without eating. This researcher wanted to learn more about how their metabolism works and it was groundbreaking.

"When mammals feed, their metabolic rate goes up between 25 and 50 percent. The rattlesnakes jumped about 700 percent. Dr. Secor switched to pythons and found that they reached even greater extremes.

If a python eats a quarter of its body weight, its metabolic rate jumps 1,000 percent. But pythons can eat their whole body weight if Dr. Secor has enough rats on hand. In those cases, their metabolic rate can soar by 4,400 percent, the highest ever recorded for an animal.

For comparison, a horse in full gallop increases its metabolic rate by about 3,500 percent. But whereas a horse may gallop for a couple minutes in the Kentucky Derby, a python can keep its metabolic rate at its extreme elevation for two weeks."

"A python can triple the mass of its small intestines overnight... Once all that food is circulating through the snake’s bloodstream, its other organs have to cope with it... Its liver and kidney double in weight, and its heart increases 40 percent."

The extreme metabolism of some snakes could provide leads on how to regenerate human tissue.

12/30/2020

In our 30 years of exhibiting giant snakes, there has always been controversy and doubt as to whether a giant snake could truly easy a person - and plenty of fraudsters with sensational stories and fake photos, trying to grab attention.

In 2018 a reliable account and videos of an Indonesian woman eaten by a reticulated python came out. She was the second person in a year to be consumed by a snake in that area. After watching one of the videos, and having knowledge of snake biology, I can say with confidence that this incident was no fake.

The species we exhibit, Burmese pythons, at maturity are slightly shorter than Reticulated pythons. However I have no doubt that any giant snake is capable of such a feat, given the appropriate circumstances. Fortunately, it is incredibly rare.

Wa Tiba, 54, went missing near her village in Indonesia, day later her family members found the engorged snake

12/24/2020

We will be closed for the holidays, and treating our big girl to a special Christmas dinner. We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

12/22/2020

Did you ever wonder if a snake has a tail or a neck? This great video showing a Burmese python skeleton being articulated, allows you to clearly see where the tail bones meet the much longer rib bones, and where the ribs stop and the neck starts!

This time-lapse video shows the rearticulation of a massive 17’7” Burmese python conducted at the Florida Museum of Natural History in 2014. Museum researche...

12/14/2020

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is the namesake of Burmese pythons. While an invasive species in Florida, in their home range their populations are threatened from habitat loss, human conflicts, and illegal smuggling.

This monk has made it his mission to provide sanctuary to native reptiles that people might otherwise kill or sell, rehabilitate them and return them to the wild.

Since the snake refuge launch five years ago, residents and government agencies, including the fire department, have been bringing captured snakes to the monk.

12/08/2020

To help prevent the release of exotic pets that may become invasive in the wild, the FL Fish and Wildlife Commission holds Pet Amnesty events where owners may surrender pets with no questions asked. To learn more about this program, go to their website.

Amnesty Program

12/04/2020

Brrrr! It will be too cold for the Giant Snake to safely go out this weekend. We look forward to opening in warmer weather!

11/27/2020

One of Florida's beautiful native snakes - I would love to see this in the wild sometime! Preservation of habitat is crucial to having species like this continue to survive in Florida.

The Florida pine snake is one of the largest snakes in eastern North America . This species can reach a length of up to 84 inches. It has brown back with dark blotches, white belly, ridged scales, small head, and pointed snout.
Their diet primarily consists of moles, rabbits, mice, rats, squirrels, lizards, and other snakes and their eggs
It inhabits areas that feature well-drained sandy soils with a moderate to open canopy. This species can be found from southwest South Carolina, west to Mobile Bay in Alabama, south to Florida (excluding the Everglades) and is considered threatened in Florida due to habitat loss.
Please report any sightings to FWC rare snake registry. https://public.myfwc.com/fwri/raresnakes/UserHome.aspx?id=

11/02/2020

Florida is home to the country's longest snake species, the Eastern Indigo. This benign snake is a Threatened species, struggling against human actions and the loss of approximately 5% of their habitat each year. They seasonally share the burrows of Gopher Tortoises, yet another Threatened species.

This beautiful snake is one of the things that makes Florida just a little more special. Shouldn't we try to save them?
If you see one, take a picture and share it with the Rare Snake Registry: https://public.myfwc.com/fwri/raresnakes/UserHome.aspx?id=

The eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi) is the longest native snake in the United States. Adults are typically 60-84 inches (152-213 cm), but the longest eastern indigo reached 110.4 in. Male snakes grow longer than females. They are a shiny blueish-black color with some red or orange scales a...