Night of the Robbits!
A water management district in Florida’s Everglades is using robot rabbits to help monitor and eventually eliminate its ever-growing population of invasive Burmese pythons that have wreaked havoc on native animals.
The solar-powered rabbits were let loose into the Everglades shortly after the annual Florida Python Challenge, a 10-day competition that draws hundreds of eager snake wranglers to hunt the invasive reptiles.
The robot bunnies, while cartoonish in appearance, are equipped with an artificial intelligence-powered camera that alerts officials with the South Florida Water Management District when they spot a python. From there, someone will be dispatched to remove the snake, according to a news release.
The robots were designed to mimic real rabbits’ movements and include mechanics to imitate a live one’s heat signature and scent, which pythons hone in on when hunting real-life bunnies.
The invasive pythons can measure as long as 18 feet in length and are capable of swallowing an entire deer whole. It’s unclear how the robot rabbits may stack up against the pythons, or how many the district may lose to the reptiles’ appetites.
The Burmese python, a non native species to the United States, was first recorded in the Sunshine State in the 1990s. Since then, its population has skyrocketed exponentially, though officials aren’t sure what the precise count is.
More than 19,000 pythons have been removed from the Everglades since 2000, according to Fox Weather Service.
Others have been either killed or removed during promoted events like the Florida Python Challenge.
Last year’s winner wiped out a staggering 20 pythons and clinched the $10,000 grand prize.
The species is exempted from the state’s animal protection legislation — except for the anti-cruelty law — and can be humanely killed year-round with or without a hunting permit or license, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Still, the python’s domination is clear when looking at the damage other species in the Everglades have suffered.
The populations of raccoons and possums, two easy prey for the gargantuan reptiles, have almost been entirely eradicated from the area, with just 1% or 2% left intact, according to a 2012 study by the United States Geological Survey.
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