Registration opens for annual Florida Python Challenge

MIAMI (AP) — Registration is now open for the 2023 Florida Python Challenge, giving participants a chance to win a share of more than $30,000 in prizes while removing invasive Burmese pythons from the wild. The 10-day competition runs Aug. 4–13 and is open to both professional and novice snake hunters. A grand prize of $10,000 goes to the participant who removes the most pythons, plus smaller prizes for additional categories. Registration opened Wednesday. Participants in last year’s competition removed 231 invasive Burmese pythons from the Everglades, an increase from the 2021 number and more than double those removed in 2020. Nearly 1,000 people from 32 states, Canada and Latvia registered.