The following was slightly edited from Natalie Neysa Alund’s article in USA TODAY
This 18-foot python caught by workers in the Everglades National Park in Florida was euthanized and during a necropsy, scientists found a whole, 5-foot alligator in its stomach. An intact 5-foot long alligator has been found inside the stomach of Burmese python in Florida, scientists said. The python was caught by workers in the Everglades National Park and euthanized on site, Florida-based geoscientist Rosie Moore told USA TODAY on Friday. During a necropsy at a research lab, Moore said, scientists found the alligator in its stomach.
A viral video of the discovery shot by Moore and posted on her Instagram page shows scientists wearing gloves evaluating the bulge in the python’s stomach before cutting it open on the floor. Scientists are then seen sliding the alligator out of the snake’s stomach.
“The alligator was fully intact,” Moore said Friday. “Just slight decay on the outer dermal layer. The osteoderms (the bony deposits on the skin) were completely intact!”
The size of the gator and the slight decomposition made for an especially unpleasant scent, Moore added.
“The smell was horrendous,” said the 26-year-old master free diver, who lives in Boca Raton.
Warning: Video contains graphic content
As of Friday, Moore’s post of the footage had garnered more than 337,000 likes and more than 2,600 comments, including one from Instagram user trusty_official.
“Shoulda just cooked the whole thing! Woulda been some kinda creepy Cajun version of a Turducken,” the user wrote.
