Alligators have clashed with non native pythons before in
Everglades National Park. A 13 ft long python tried to swallow a
6 ft alligator whole and then exploded. Scientists have
documented four similar encounters in the last three years. The
encroachment of Burmese pythons into the Everglades could
threaten an $8 billion restoration project and endanger smaller
species, said Frank Mazzotti, a University of Florida wildlife
professor. The gators have had to share their territory with a
python population that has swelled over the past 20 years after
owners dropped off pythons they no longer wanted in the
Everglades. The Asian snakes have thrived in the wet, hot
climate. “Encounters like that are almost never seen in the
wild – and we here are, it's happened for the fourth
time,” Mazzotti said. In the other cases, the alligator won
or the battle was an apparent draw.