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40 GPS-Collared Opossums Deployed to Track Burmese Pythons

4/29/2026

Summary

Opossums Track Pythons

Researchers are deploying GPS-collared opossums to locate and remove invasive Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades.
When a python swallows a collared opossum, the collar keeps transmitting the snake’s live location.
The team plans to field at least 40 collared opossums by later this summer to accelerate python removal and help halt steep declines of raccoons, opossums and bobcats.

Summary

Python Captured

In July 2023, a Burmese python over 19 feet long was captured in South Florida, indicating continued growth.
In 2022, an 18-foot, 215-pound python—Florida’s heaviest—was caught near Naples by a Conservancy of Southwest Florida biologist.
U.S. Geological Survey data show the python’s range is expanding several miles per year in parts of the Everglades.
Collar prices fell from $1,500 to $190, enabling researchers to equip up to 40 opossums for monitoring.

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Opossums Track Pythons

Researchers are deploying GPS-collared opossums to locate and remove invasive Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades.
When a python swallows a collared opossum, the collar keeps transmitting the snake’s live location.
The team plans to field at least 40 collared opossums by later this summer to accelerate python removal and help halt steep declines of raccoons, opossums and bobcats.

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