USGS tests drone tracking of radio-tagged Burmese pythons in the Everglades, 4.88 m snake released
In September 2026 USGS biologists flew a small drone to pick up radio signals from a tagged 67 kg python. The method is still under evaluation.
In September 2026, biologists of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) tested a small drone to locate a Burmese python released in the Florida Everglades, according to Futura Sciences. The snake, a female 4.88 m long and weighing 67 kg, had just been fitted with a radio tag. University of Florida interns released her while USGS staff flew the drone. futura-sciences.com
Futura Sciencesfutura-sciences.comOpen source ↗ The agency also published preliminary findings from experiments combining radiotelemetry and light drones in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem.
Scout snakes and the breeding season
The test belongs to the USGS "scout snake" programme. Selected males and females receive a surgically implanted radio transmitter and are tracked throughout the year, with particular attention to the breeding season. Males gather around a receptive female, so a single signal can lead researchers to several animals. In the 2019-2020 season the method removed 86 adult pythons, about 2,270 kg in total, including 53 breeding females carrying more than 2,500 developing eggs.
The USGS has confirmed that Burmese pythons eat protected native species, among them the Key Largo woodrat (federally listed as threatened), the wood stork, the limpkin and the round-tailed muskrat.
What the drone is meant to do
Finding the snakes remains laborious: researchers walk through wet prairies and dense vegetation to pick up radio signals. futura-sciences.com
Futura Sciencesfutura-sciences.comOpen source ↗ The test was meant to check whether an uncrewed aircraft (sUAS) can receive the signals from the air more efficiently than a ground team. The drone can carry either a radio receiver to locate tags or a camera for visual surveillance.
If the approach proves effective, it could lower operating costs, allow pythons to be located more often and reduce risk to field staff in hard-to-reach areas, according to the source. For comparison, trained detection dogs are estimated to be 2.5 times more effective than humans alone, but their use depends on terrain and on qualified handlers.
The USGS has not yet validated the approach. Evaluation continues in the complex habitats of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve. Both areas are covered by a geospatial dataset published in September 2026, which compiles the locations of pythons tracked between 2005 and 2026.
