Everglades Opossums Endangered by Pythons

Precipitous declines in formerly common mammals in Everglades National Park, southern Florida, have been linked to the presence of invasive Burmese Pythons (Python molurus bivittatus), according to a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) coauthored study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The study, the first to document the ecological impacts of this invasive species, strongly supports that animal communities in this 1.5-million-acre park have been markedly altered by the proliferation of pythons, particularly since 2000. Mid-sized mammals are the most drastically affected.

The most severe declines, including a nearly complete disappearance of raccoons, rabbits, and opossums, have occurred in the remote southernmost regions of the park, where pythons have been established the longest. In this area, populations of raccoons dropped 99.3 percent, opossums 98.9 percent, and bobcats 87.5 percent. Marsh and cottontail rabbits, as well as foxes, were not seen at all. ....

The mammals that have declined most significantly have been regularly found in the stomachs of Burmese Pythons removed from Everglades National Park and elsewhere in Florida. The authors noted that raccoons and opossums often forage for food near the water’s edge, a habitat frequented by pythons in search of prey.