Scientists use female Burmese pythons as lures in Florida, but experiment fails

Researchers in Florida have tested whether Burmese python pheromones could work as a lure, because low detectability has hampered efforts to remove the snakes from the Everglades. The United States Geological Survey and the National Park Service have both described pheromone studies, though neither reports results. According to the study published in the BioOne Digital Library, titled ‘Not So Fatal Attraction: Captive Female Burmese Python Lures Do Not Improve Wild Python Detection’, in Southeastern Naturalist, the authors tested captive female pythons as lures at three Everglades sites. Cameras took 3,690,308 photographs and recorded four independent python detections: three at pens holding females and one at an empty control pen.