Burmese pythons pose an even greater threat to Florida's natural ecosystem than previously thought because of their big mouths, scientists recently discovered.
The non-native and invasive snake species can consume prey of "large absolute size" just by opening and stretching their jaws wide enough, according to a new study published in the Reptiles & Amphibians journal.
While the frequency of the ritual remains unclear, scientists found that all three of the big snakes studied have a "gape bigger than even previous mathematical models would suggest," which means more animals across southern Florida are on the menu, according to a Conservancy of Southwest Florida news release.
Burmese pythons generally prey on reptiles, birds and native mammals like foxes, bobcats or raccoons. They have "decimated" a number of species populations over the years due to their unique dietary needs.
White-tailed deer, another native species, were added to the prey list after a female Burmese python consumed a 77-pound white-tailed deer.
"Watching an invasive apex predator swallow a full-sized deer in front of you is something that you will never forget," Ian Bartoszek, a wildlife biologist with the conservancy, said in the news release. "The impact the Burmese python is having on native wildlife cannot be denied ... This is a wildlife issue of our time for the Greater Everglades ecosystem."
The Burmese python seen in the clip above can be considered an "overachiever" of sorts since it was testing the limit of its abilities.
"Besides the large absolute size of the deer that was eaten being impressive, our anatomical measurements indicate this deer was very near the size limit on the prey that could be consumed by this snake," University of Cincinnati professor Bruce Jayne said. "Hence, these snakes resemble overachievers by sometimes testing the limits of what their anatomy allows rather than being slackers that eat only 'snack size' prey."
A similar instance of a Burmese python eating its size and weight in a larger native prey species was also documented in 2018, but "how often this occurs is still up for questioning," according to the conservancy.
But, knowing the limits on the size of prey that Burmese pythons can eat can help researchers predict the ecological impact the invasive snakes might have as they move into new areas, the conservancy said.
"We have been removing pythons and advancing invasive snake science for over a decade," Bartoszek said. "These animals continue to impress us each season and one thing we've learned for certain is to not underestimate the Burmese python."