A Florida man who found and killed a nearly 12-foot-long Burmese python was told by a state agency to “put it in the trash” because “there were too many” of them for officials to handle.
Wayne Gardner, now known in Charlotte County as “the snake man,” encountered the highly invasive species on Tuesday, WINK reported. The snakes have been spreading beyond the Everglades and threatening native wildlife.
Because of that, the public is allowed to “capture and humanely kill” pythons without permits, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Gardner said he saw the 11-foot, 5-inch reptile stretched halfway across a road as he returned home from dinner.
“It was hard to miss because it stretched at least halfway across the road,” Gardner told WINK. “We just stopped. I took one quick picture and realized I didn’t have anything else to handle it with.”
He also believed his friends would be skeptical, even with photographic evidence.
“They would never believe me if I just sent them a picture of it, they would want to know where I got the picture of the snake from,” he told the television station.
Gardner returned home to retrieve a snare and an ax.
NOPE! Look at the size of this Burmese python caught last night in Rotonda West, Florida. Nearly 12 feet long! Unfortunately more of these invasive snakes in recent years have been expanding out of the Everglades, including here in Charlotte County. Credit: Wade Gardner 🐍… pic.twitter.com/ZCB8gkg4Ac
— Matt Devitt (@MattDevittWX) November 20, 2025
After killing the snake, Gardner contacted the FWC and asked the agency to claim the snake’s remains. He was surprised by the answer he received.
“They said there’s just too many of them now, and they can’t come and get all of them,” he told WINK. “So bury it, put it in the trash.”
Naturalist Rob Howell said the snakes continue to get larger and move north from the Everglades.
“These animals can get pushing 15 (feet on) average. Average is, you know, six to eight and then eight to 10 is pretty large,” Howell said. “They’re going to keep moving north as food sources dwindle where they’re at because they’re eating everything.”
While Gardner and other residents normally do not get compensated for killing Burmese pythons, the state does have an annual contest with cash prizes.
The Florida Python Challenge awards $10,000 to the top snake wrangler. This year’s winner, Taylor Stanberry, removed 60 pythons.
The heaviest Burmese python ever recorded in Florida was an 18-foot, 215-pound snake caught at Picayune Strand State Forest in 2021, according to CBS News.
The longest Burmese python caught in the state was caught in July 2023, measured 19 feet and weighed 125 pounds. It was caught by amateur hunter Jake Waleri, the Sun-Sentinel reported.
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