Pythons at Polliwog Park? There goes the neighborhood

The U.S. Geological Survey released maps Wednesday showing that Burmese pythons, already present in Florida, could find hospitable climates throughout the southern and southwestern United States within the next 100 years. That's right -- 20-foot, 250-pound snakes slithering through the South Bay and Harbor Area.
USA Today reports:

"One of the USGS maps shows where the pythons could live today, an area that expands when scientists use global warming models for 2100.
'We were surprised by the map. It was bigger than we thought it was going to be,' says Gordon Rodda, a USGS zoologist and lead researcher on the project. 'They are moving northward; there’s no question.'
Burmese pythons were introduced to this country as part of the pet trade. The first specimens in the wild were discovered in the mid-1990s in the Florida
Everglades, released by owners who no longer wanted them, says Skip Snow, a wildlife biologist with the National Parks Service in the Everglades. By 2003, there was evidence that the snakes had established breeding colonies in the wild."

Here's the full story. To see the maps and read the official word from the USGS, click here. Finally, if for no other reason than to visit a Web site called "Florida Invaders," check out the National Parks Service's information on non-native species in the Florida Everglades.
The USA Today story goes on to say that Burmese pythons aren't considered a danger to humans but that if you see one, "don't engage it." That would be a little forward, even if it is love at first sight. But seriously, call the authorities -- or maybe Reggie.