REPORTER: Ginny Stein
It's dawn in Broward County, and John Storms is getting ready for another trip into the FloridaEverglades.
JOHN STORMS, SNAKE HUNTER: Actually last time we were out, one of my radiator mounts had busted loose.
Along with his wife Melody and friend Billy Rother, John's going to go hunting - or harvesting as he prefers to call it.
JOHN STORMS: I am having a .22 magnum pistol on my side with rat shot in it, which is more of a shot shell. And I am hoping that will be the best opportunity for me to harvest it.
With the airboat repaired, it's time to head out.
JOHN STORMS: Billy, get your stuff, let's get ready to go.
The Everglades is a vast wetland covering Florida's southern tip. It's a unique environment - much of it covered in these iconic sawgrass marshes. And everywhere there are glimpses of theEverglades most famous inhabitants - alligators. In season, they would be the quarry for hunters like John and Billy, but today they're on the lookout for a something else - snakes - foreign snakes - to be precise.
JOHN STORMS: This is a Burmese python and you can see the colour of the snake will blend in very well with the natural environment so they are very difficult to find.
This is what the hunters have in their sights - Burmese pythons can grow up to five metres and have few predators except for alligators. According to snake expert Albert Killian, they're not aggressive towards humans as long as you keep your distance.
ALBERT KILLIAN: If you got too close, he would probably lunge and strike at you from a distance of 6 or 7 feet, depending on the size of the snake.
GABRIELLA FERRERO, FLORIDA WILDLIFE COMMISSION: There's a big problem in that the non-native reptiles do not belong here and what they are doing is they are preying upon the native wildlife.
According to the Florida Wildlife Commission, tens of thousands of non-native snakes, including Burmese pythons, have invaded the Everglades. The subtropical climate makes for a perfect breeding ground, and introduced species are now threatening endangered birds and mammals. How the snakes got here is the stuff of legend.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: Hurricane Andrew in the early 1990s definitely damaged pet stores in and around theMiami area and we know that some of those critters got loose and ended up in the Everglades where they have reproduced and multiplied.
To combat the snake plague, the Wildlife Commission has taken a drastic step. For the first time it's opened up a 6-week snake season to anyone with a hunting licence, and at the top of the wanted list is the Burmese python.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: This is a field identification card, we've given this to hunters so they can recognise native snakes from non-native snakes so they don't capture the native critters.
JOHN STORM: We are actually trying to help FWC control the exotic species and that's why we are out here doing it.
John Storms and his hunting partner Billy, have made it to a levee bank deep in the Everglades and now they're turning their attention to tackling the snakes.
JOHN STORM: The chances are they will try to bite you if you grab a hold of them.
REPORTER: But they are not venomous?
BILLY: No, they are not venomous, but I heard their bite is very painful.
JOHN STORM: They have curved teeth so if they grab a hold of you they don't let go.
John and Billy set off in search of the foreign invaders. While it's true that some of the escapee snakes slithered to freedom during Hurricane Andrew, many more were household pets that have been released. Authorities estimate that over the past decade more than 1 million snakes have been imported for the pet trade.
AARON JOYCE, PET STORE OWNER: This is Satan. He is not necessarily the nicest here.
Aaron Joyce and Hillary Dupont run one of the largest exotic pet shops in Florida. Hillary says snakes have always had a certain macho appeal to some of her customers.
HILLARY DUPONT, PET STORE OWNER: What guy to show their manliness doesn't want a big snake? I mean, growing up since I was little all the guys would come in and they'd have snakes around their neck and they would be like, "Hey, this is like a status symbol," you know, "I'm cool, I've got a big snake."
Recently, the authorities in Florida started tightening snake ownership laws - it's a change supported by Hillary and Aaron.
AARON JOYCE: She's squeezing quite tightly. You can't drive a car down the road without a licence, you can't own tigers and elephants without licences and it should be the same way with these guys - if not similar.
But the crackdown is having unwanted consequences. People have started dumping their pet pythons.
HILLARY DUPONT: One morning I showed up and there was a box of Burmese pythons at the door. And it's like we are not supposed to take them, but what do you do? So it's like a tough call, because to keep them, they are a felon if they don't get the permit. And a lot of people, especially with the economy, can't afford a $100 permit, take it to the vet, and get it micro-chipped, and all that.
With the laws tightening, more and more snakes are ending up here at the Everglades Outpost animal refuge where Albert Killian works. He says the restrictions are coming too late.
ALBERT KILLIAN: It is not a problem for people to own these animals at this point in time. If you were to deal with this problem you would have had to deal with it the minute these animals were sold on the pet trade.
This refuge is living proof of the authorities' earlier lenient approach to the importation of many exotic species. Most of these animals were brought here after being dumped or confiscated.
ALBERT KILLIAN: He's called a capuchin, he's come from South America. These are the monkeys that are very popular also in the pet trade.
Surprisingly, Albert says that some snakes came to America, not as pets, but as part of a more sinister trade.
ALBERT KILLIAN: Snakes were very popular for drug dealers because what they could do was take kilos of cocaine and shove them into the snakes' stomach and nobody wants to open up a crate with a snake in it. So they were able to smuggle their drugs in until the DEA became aware of what was going on and eventually started raiding the animal trade in relationship to the drug trade.
Back in the Everglades, John and Billy aren't having much luck. They've been walking this levee for hours and they've found nothing.
REPORTER: Did you think by now we would have spotted some?
JOHN STORM: I would have hoped so. But then again I hoped not, because I hope they are not taking over like everyone is saying.
Today, this is the only evidence of the hunters' prey.
JOHN STORM: But if you were to add all this up it is not the largest vertebrae as I've seen before but that's large for an Everglades.
JOSH ZARMATI: We set this up like this - if you want to just lay out.
Another snake hunter, Josh Zarmati, is just back from the field and he's got plenty to show for it.
JOSH ZARMATI: I've got a full snake here.
REPORTER: That's a long one. How long?
JOSH ZARMATI: 12.8 feet.
REPORTER: What sort of snake?
JOSH ZARMATI: Burmese python.
Josh is a professional snake hunter - one of only 13 in the state of Florida. He's tried his hand at other jobs, but he keeps coming back to this. Today, Josh is selling his skins to Brian Wood, who normally trades in alligators, but has recently moved into the snake market.
BRIAN WOODS, SKINS DEALER: It's just $5 or $10 a foot depending in the size - the larger sizes are worth more money.
The snake skins are then fashioned into an alarming range of products. This open season on serpents has brought criticism from some animal rights groups, but Brian says there's no other option.
BRIAN WOODS: When you get snakes that can grow 14, 16, 20 feet - you know in the wild here - that can attack dogs, can attack people, then I think that is definitely time we did something about it.
Florida's Wildlife Commission is also dismissive of the critics.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: They've called this hunting season a slaughter. And we disagree with that. These species are not protected, they don't belong here in Florida and so we think it is very important that they be euthanised on the spot.
Another day, and another snake hunt gets under way.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: Hopefully, with the weather the way it is, we'll have some good opportunities to see some snakes.
This time, I'm going with Captain Jeff Fobb. He spends his life around snakes and records every encounter.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: This is the numbering system and it is usually got the date and the specimen I found. You can see on this day I found four specimens.
Jeff's day job is as a paramedic specialising in treating venomous snake bites. In his time off, he too is a python hunter.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: A very likely area, we'll go around some sunny patches in here and see if - this has been disturbed a little bit lately.
The first sign of today's prey - the skeletal remains of a native species.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: It's a native, it looks like a brown water snake.
It's not long before we come across some professional python hunters with their own film crew travelling on an amphibious vehicle.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: You've had some luck today - out on the islands?
SHAWN: Yeah.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: I figured they'd be kind of holed up - the weather.
SHAWN: You know that's where I was talking and nobody has been on them.
So far today, they've captured three snakes.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: Ah, he even wears red in case it bleeds through.
The campaign to exterminate foreign snakes is making progress, but for some of these hunters it's bittersweet. While they're determined to save the Everglades, they can't help but admire their scaly adversaries.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: You have to admit that even though they are not supposed to be here, they are magnificent animals, they are gorgeous and I don't know how you can't look at them and just not think they are not magnificent.
It's dawn in Broward County, and John Storms is getting ready for another trip into the FloridaEverglades.
JOHN STORMS, SNAKE HUNTER: Actually last time we were out, one of my radiator mounts had busted loose.
Along with his wife Melody and friend Billy Rother, John's going to go hunting - or harvesting as he prefers to call it.
JOHN STORMS: I am having a .22 magnum pistol on my side with rat shot in it, which is more of a shot shell. And I am hoping that will be the best opportunity for me to harvest it.
With the airboat repaired, it's time to head out.
JOHN STORMS: Billy, get your stuff, let's get ready to go.
The Everglades is a vast wetland covering Florida's southern tip. It's a unique environment - much of it covered in these iconic sawgrass marshes. And everywhere there are glimpses of theEverglades most famous inhabitants - alligators. In season, they would be the quarry for hunters like John and Billy, but today they're on the lookout for a something else - snakes - foreign snakes - to be precise.
JOHN STORMS: This is a Burmese python and you can see the colour of the snake will blend in very well with the natural environment so they are very difficult to find.
This is what the hunters have in their sights - Burmese pythons can grow up to five metres and have few predators except for alligators. According to snake expert Albert Killian, they're not aggressive towards humans as long as you keep your distance.
ALBERT KILLIAN: If you got too close, he would probably lunge and strike at you from a distance of 6 or 7 feet, depending on the size of the snake.
GABRIELLA FERRERO, FLORIDA WILDLIFE COMMISSION: There's a big problem in that the non-native reptiles do not belong here and what they are doing is they are preying upon the native wildlife.
According to the Florida Wildlife Commission, tens of thousands of non-native snakes, including Burmese pythons, have invaded the Everglades. The subtropical climate makes for a perfect breeding ground, and introduced species are now threatening endangered birds and mammals. How the snakes got here is the stuff of legend.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: Hurricane Andrew in the early 1990s definitely damaged pet stores in and around theMiami area and we know that some of those critters got loose and ended up in the Everglades where they have reproduced and multiplied.
To combat the snake plague, the Wildlife Commission has taken a drastic step. For the first time it's opened up a 6-week snake season to anyone with a hunting licence, and at the top of the wanted list is the Burmese python.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: This is a field identification card, we've given this to hunters so they can recognise native snakes from non-native snakes so they don't capture the native critters.
JOHN STORM: We are actually trying to help FWC control the exotic species and that's why we are out here doing it.
John Storms and his hunting partner Billy, have made it to a levee bank deep in the Everglades and now they're turning their attention to tackling the snakes.
JOHN STORM: The chances are they will try to bite you if you grab a hold of them.
REPORTER: But they are not venomous?
BILLY: No, they are not venomous, but I heard their bite is very painful.
JOHN STORM: They have curved teeth so if they grab a hold of you they don't let go.
John and Billy set off in search of the foreign invaders. While it's true that some of the escapee snakes slithered to freedom during Hurricane Andrew, many more were household pets that have been released. Authorities estimate that over the past decade more than 1 million snakes have been imported for the pet trade.
AARON JOYCE, PET STORE OWNER: This is Satan. He is not necessarily the nicest here.
Aaron Joyce and Hillary Dupont run one of the largest exotic pet shops in Florida. Hillary says snakes have always had a certain macho appeal to some of her customers.
HILLARY DUPONT, PET STORE OWNER: What guy to show their manliness doesn't want a big snake? I mean, growing up since I was little all the guys would come in and they'd have snakes around their neck and they would be like, "Hey, this is like a status symbol," you know, "I'm cool, I've got a big snake."
Recently, the authorities in Florida started tightening snake ownership laws - it's a change supported by Hillary and Aaron.
AARON JOYCE: She's squeezing quite tightly. You can't drive a car down the road without a licence, you can't own tigers and elephants without licences and it should be the same way with these guys - if not similar.
But the crackdown is having unwanted consequences. People have started dumping their pet pythons.
HILLARY DUPONT: One morning I showed up and there was a box of Burmese pythons at the door. And it's like we are not supposed to take them, but what do you do? So it's like a tough call, because to keep them, they are a felon if they don't get the permit. And a lot of people, especially with the economy, can't afford a $100 permit, take it to the vet, and get it micro-chipped, and all that.
With the laws tightening, more and more snakes are ending up here at the Everglades Outpost animal refuge where Albert Killian works. He says the restrictions are coming too late.
ALBERT KILLIAN: It is not a problem for people to own these animals at this point in time. If you were to deal with this problem you would have had to deal with it the minute these animals were sold on the pet trade.
This refuge is living proof of the authorities' earlier lenient approach to the importation of many exotic species. Most of these animals were brought here after being dumped or confiscated.
ALBERT KILLIAN: He's called a capuchin, he's come from South America. These are the monkeys that are very popular also in the pet trade.
Surprisingly, Albert says that some snakes came to America, not as pets, but as part of a more sinister trade.
ALBERT KILLIAN: Snakes were very popular for drug dealers because what they could do was take kilos of cocaine and shove them into the snakes' stomach and nobody wants to open up a crate with a snake in it. So they were able to smuggle their drugs in until the DEA became aware of what was going on and eventually started raiding the animal trade in relationship to the drug trade.
Back in the Everglades, John and Billy aren't having much luck. They've been walking this levee for hours and they've found nothing.
REPORTER: Did you think by now we would have spotted some?
JOHN STORM: I would have hoped so. But then again I hoped not, because I hope they are not taking over like everyone is saying.
Today, this is the only evidence of the hunters' prey.
JOHN STORM: But if you were to add all this up it is not the largest vertebrae as I've seen before but that's large for an Everglades.
JOSH ZARMATI: We set this up like this - if you want to just lay out.
Another snake hunter, Josh Zarmati, is just back from the field and he's got plenty to show for it.
JOSH ZARMATI: I've got a full snake here.
REPORTER: That's a long one. How long?
JOSH ZARMATI: 12.8 feet.
REPORTER: What sort of snake?
JOSH ZARMATI: Burmese python.
Josh is a professional snake hunter - one of only 13 in the state of Florida. He's tried his hand at other jobs, but he keeps coming back to this. Today, Josh is selling his skins to Brian Wood, who normally trades in alligators, but has recently moved into the snake market.
BRIAN WOODS, SKINS DEALER: It's just $5 or $10 a foot depending in the size - the larger sizes are worth more money.
The snake skins are then fashioned into an alarming range of products. This open season on serpents has brought criticism from some animal rights groups, but Brian says there's no other option.
BRIAN WOODS: When you get snakes that can grow 14, 16, 20 feet - you know in the wild here - that can attack dogs, can attack people, then I think that is definitely time we did something about it.
Florida's Wildlife Commission is also dismissive of the critics.
GABRIELLA FERRERO: They've called this hunting season a slaughter. And we disagree with that. These species are not protected, they don't belong here in Florida and so we think it is very important that they be euthanised on the spot.
Another day, and another snake hunt gets under way.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: Hopefully, with the weather the way it is, we'll have some good opportunities to see some snakes.
This time, I'm going with Captain Jeff Fobb. He spends his life around snakes and records every encounter.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: This is the numbering system and it is usually got the date and the specimen I found. You can see on this day I found four specimens.
Jeff's day job is as a paramedic specialising in treating venomous snake bites. In his time off, he too is a python hunter.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: A very likely area, we'll go around some sunny patches in here and see if - this has been disturbed a little bit lately.
The first sign of today's prey - the skeletal remains of a native species.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: It's a native, it looks like a brown water snake.
It's not long before we come across some professional python hunters with their own film crew travelling on an amphibious vehicle.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: You've had some luck today - out on the islands?
SHAWN: Yeah.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: I figured they'd be kind of holed up - the weather.
SHAWN: You know that's where I was talking and nobody has been on them.
So far today, they've captured three snakes.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: Ah, he even wears red in case it bleeds through.
The campaign to exterminate foreign snakes is making progress, but for some of these hunters it's bittersweet. While they're determined to save the Everglades, they can't help but admire their scaly adversaries.
CAPTAIN JEFF FOBB: You have to admit that even though they are not supposed to be here, they are magnificent animals, they are gorgeous and I don't know how you can't look at them and just not think they are not magnificent.