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Captive Alligators Feast on Donated 15-Foot Burmese Python
By @sharedot · · 6 pages
- Wildlife
- Burmese Pythons
- Alligators
- Invasive Species
Everglades biologist Rosie Moore shared a video of two captive alligators devouring a dead 14-to-15-foot invasive Burmese python donated as food.
A python becomes alligator food
Everglades wildlife biologist Rosie Moore posted an Instagram clip on Sept. 15 showing two captive alligators feeding on a donated dead male Burmese python estimated at 14 to 15 feet long. The snake was not hunted in the wild: it had been given to Moore as "alligator food," and the moment was set in motion entirely by human handlers. "While these guys are typically accustomed to more chicken and fish, I'm sure they're not going to shy away from a Burmese python," Moore told her followers. Both alligators began biting into the snake immediately, with no hesitation once it landed in the enclosure.
Why the scene is not what it looks like
The clip reads like a wild predator clash, but the reality behind it is different in every meaningful way. The prey was already dead, the predators were captive, and people delivered the meal — a chain of decisions that began with the python being removed from the landscape as an invasive species. Moore told followers, "Just as we expected, they absolutely loved it," adding that each alligator "took their own chunk and went to their own separate sides of the cage — almost like a dog, kind of resource guarding." That behavior, straight out of a captive feeding session, underscores how much human intervention shapes the animal encounters people end up watching online.
The invasive python problem behind the video
Burmese pythons are invasive in South Florida, while alligators are among the region's best-known native predators, and the collision of the two is a recurring storyline. The video also carries a broader message: invasive snake problems do not emerge in a vacuum but are linked to human decisions about how animals are transported, kept, and managed.
The biologist behind the camera
Dangerous animals are a regular part of Moore's work. According to People, she leads a nonprofit focused on reptile research and works with the International SeaKeepers Society, joining marine expeditions to find rare species and tag dangerous wildlife. "Anything that can kill you is what I want to figure out," Moore told People in August. Related reporting shows the python-versus-alligator dynamic runs both ways in Florida — alligators have eaten and killed invasive pythons in the wild, while studies have found Burmese pythons can swallow deer and even alligators whole.