Reasons to Visit Everglades Essay Example

Thinking of going to the Everglades? You might want to reconsider after hearing about the giant beasts living there. No, it’s not Bigfoot, it’s the Burmese Python! Tens of thousands of these invasive 23-foot-long beasts are loose in the Everglades. These reptiles are rapidly reproducing and changing the image of the Florida Everglades. The presence of these Burmese Pythons is having drastic effects on the Everglades ecosystem and the Florida economy. 

To begin, the presence of the Burmese Pythons in the Florida Everglades is greatly affecting the financial status of the state of Florida. In the desperate act of getting rid of these pythons, Florida legislatures started allowing inexperienced hunters hunt these pythons in the Python Challenge. According to the newspaper article titled “Florida’s Python Hunt” the winner of the challenge can win up to $1,500! This is valuable money that could be used for strengthening the military forces, building highways, and other important programs. In the second source it mentions that many of these hunters have never even seen a python. Novice hunters might not realize at the time what they are going to hunt, this snake is massive and could kill inexperienced hunters with ease thanks to its long body and expanding mouth. The need for money can cause a rise in taxes for the people since these programs are often paid using taxes charged from the people. All this waste of money because of the negligence of people who think a 200-pound snake would make a good pet and later let them go in the wild often in the Everglades.

Furthermore, these reptiles are drastically affecting the ecosystem. Since these pythons lack a natural predator, as mentioned in “Florida’s Python Hunt”, this means they can eat any animals that come across their path without restraint. These animals do not belong in the United States since they are native to Southeast Asia, that is one of the main reasons why their inhabitance is so controversial to the Everglades. It is quite hot in their natural habitat which is a trait that it shares with the state of Florida, this means that the climate is perfect for the survival and reproduction of this specie. As stated by the author of “Florida’s Python Hunt” “…they thrive in the warm, humid climate”. The population of Burmese Pythons in the Everglades is increasing at a fast pace, with this increase there is an imbalance between the Everglades animals and python population. The python’s clearly being the dominant one’s in this disproportion. The fact that the Burmese python is at the top of the food chain means that it can eat any animal at any level of the food chain eventually leading to havoc and is the cause for Everglade’s animal decrease. As mentioned in the informational article by the name of “Burmese Python: Not the Ideal Pet” the Burmese pythons are carnivores and often feed on birds and mammals. This can include animals like racoons and bobcats as mentioned in the newspaper article. These animals are not measly, lots of them are high up on the food chain.

For the reasons above, these creatures are changing the Everglades in a negative way. This is all a product of irresponsible human acts. Now the Everglades population and the Florida economy must pay for the incompetence of these humans. Hopefully this problem is fixed soon, and the Everglades can be restored to its old beloved self.