Incubation Temperature and Sex Ratio of a Python bivittatus (Burmese Python) Clutch Hatched in Everglades National Park, Florida

A Burmese python (Python bivittatus) clutch in Everglades National Park exhibited a 77% hatching success, with the female losing 54% of her body weight during breeding. The study found that egg-mass temperature was more stable than ambient temperatures, ranging from 26.29–31.41 °C (mean = 28.07 °C), likely buffered by adjacent vegetation and shivering thermogenesis. This stability contrasted with direct sun temperatures, which fluctuated wildly between 20.81 °C and 45.70 °C (mean = 28.45 °C). Among successful hatchlings, the sex ratio was skewed, with 9 males and 8 females. The research highlights the resilience of python nests to extreme environmental conditions while also documenting the significant physiological cost for breeding females.

Wolf, A. J., Walters, T. M., Rochford, M. R., Snow, R. W., & Mazzotti, F. J. (2016). Incubation Temperature and Sex Ratio of a Python bivittatus (Burmese Python) Clutch Hatched in Everglades National Park, Florida. Southeastern Naturalist, 15(sp8), 35–39. https://doi.org/10.1656/058.015.sp803