Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 558 is my conversation with professional python hunter Kevin Pavlidis about removing invasive Burmese pythons from the Florida Everglades. We get into how python behavior shifts in winter from random hunting movements to predictable breeding patterns, what it actually takes to find and catch a giant constrictor by hand, and the hands-on technique for safely subduing a fifteen-foot snake without getting hurt.
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Kevin Pavlidis is a professional python hunter who removes invasive Burmese pythons from the Florida Everglades. He works in the field at night, often in the water, locating and capturing some of the largest constrictors in South Florida as part of the ongoing effort to control a species that has badly disrupted the native ecosystem.
Burmese pythons are an invasive species in South Florida with no natural predators, and they have decimated populations of native mammals and birds across the Everglades. They reproduce successfully and grow very large, so removing them by hand has become one of the main tools wildlife managers use to slow their spread.
Kevin explains that during the South Florida winter, python behavior shifts from random hunting movements to highly predictable breeding patterns. That predictability is what makes the cooler months a productive window for hunters, because the snakes concentrate and move in ways that are easier to anticipate.
Catching a large python is a physical, hands-on process of controlling the head first and then managing the body, and Kevin describes it almost like a grappling problem. In the episode he walks through how he positions himself, why control of the head is everything, and how he stays safe while handling a snake that powerful.
Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 558 with Kevin Pavlidis is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you get your podcasts. The video version is embedded at the top of this page.
I have always been fascinated by people who do dangerous, physical work that almost nobody else is willing to do, and removing invasive pythons from the Everglades by hand is about as raw as it gets. Kevin does this for real, in the dark, in the water, and he treats it like a craft. I wanted him to walk me through how he thinks about finding these snakes, what the season does to their behavior, and what actually happens in the moment you put your hands on something that big and that strong.
The thing that surprised me most is how much the season changes everything. In the warm months these snakes move almost randomly, but Kevin says winter flips a switch and their movements become predictable as they shift into breeding behavior. That predictability is the whole game. He explains how he reads it and why the cold months are when a serious hunter can really put numbers on the board. Press play to hear how he turns a behavior pattern into a strategy.
Talking about catching a fifteen-foot python is one thing. Kevin describing the moment it happens is another. He gets into the physicality of it, the way you have to control the head before anything else, and how quickly things can go wrong if you do it in the wrong order. I have grappled, and the way he describes it sounds a lot like jiu-jitsu against an animal that does not get tired. Listen to that part of the conversation.
It would be easy to treat python hunting as pure spectacle, but underneath the danger there is a real conservation problem in the Everglades. Kevin talks about what these snakes have done to the native wildlife and why hand-removal is still one of the best tools available. That mix of high adrenaline and genuine purpose is what made me want to record this one. Hear him explain the stakes in the episode.
▶ Watch on YouTube · 🎧 Listen now
The day after talking to Kevin, what stuck with me was how methodical he is about something that looks like pure chaos from the outside. He has turned a dangerous, physical job into a craft with patterns and rules.
There is a real conservation story underneath all of it too. These snakes are a problem we created, and people like Kevin are out there in the dark doing the unglamorous work of trying to fix it. Press play and hear how he does it.
▶ Watch on YouTube · 🎧 Listen now
The Tom Rowland Podcast brings you long-form conversations with the most accomplished anglers, hunters, conservationists, and outdoor professionals in the game. Listen to every full-length Tom Rowland Podcast interview.
Kevin Pavlidis is a professional python hunter who specializes in removing invasive Burmese pythons from the Florida Everglades. Working largely at night and often in the water, he locates and captures some of the largest constrictors in South Florida, contributing to the ongoing effort to manage an invasive species that has severely impacted the region's native wildlife.
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