Florida deploys 120 solar-powered robot rabbits to lure invasive Burmese pythons out of hiding: 'It's like something out of a knock-off spy film.'

Ayala Sorotsky • Writer and Editor

Sep 28, 2026 10:45 AM EDT

You never knew you wanted to hear about robot rabbits that hunt snakes, but here you are.

We already know animals provide us with the craziest stories. The animal kingdom is so vast, diverse, and unique that it really is not that surprising that the craziest stories are about animals. Like these baby possums born in an AC, because of course a mama possum would find the absolutely most unhinged place to raise her family in. Or a crazy brave story filled with kindness about a Mohawk man saving an injured bald eagle, because the majestic predator couldn't get out of a tree by himself. Animals provide us with such bonkers tales, but this next one tops them all.

Florida is deploying an army of robot rabbits to lure out Burmese python snakes. What the actual fluff is going on? Well, let's start from the basics: These Burmese pythons are an invasive species, and they're not the nicest of animals, to say the least. They actually took out 95% of the mammal population, and some of the bird population, in the Everglades National Park. That's a massive hit to the local wildlife. And that's where human ingenuity and cleverness come in - in the form of fluffy bunny robots. These Furby creatures are here to save the day! Let's learn about them below.

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Florida snake hunters deploy robotic rabbits to capture invasive Burmese pythons

We need to have just like 10 seconds to stop and appreciate how absolutely cute the robot rabbits look. They're practically identical to a bunny plushie you'd let your kid sleep with. This round face and extra fluff don't give away how lethal the project it participates in is. It looks so innocent.

CupidStunt13 OP A team dedicated to controlling populations of invasive Burmese pythons in South Florida has deployed another unique method to find the elusive predators: robotic rabbits.

The robots are remote- controlled, solar-powered and designed to look like marsh rabbits, a preferred choice of prey for the pythons, according to the South Florida Water Management District, which is funding the project as part of its Python Elimination Program.

Researchers designed the devices to produce a heat signature and emit a smell designed to attract the pythons, according to the utility company.

They are also equipped with cameras to monitor for the pythons' movements and alert officials when one is detected - who can then send out a snake wrangler to detect and euthanize the animals.

The sneaky high-tech bunny decoys bring out the pythons and keep an eye on them until the wranglers come. It's like something out of a knock-off spy film.

Here's another stopping point for understanding the sheer size of the Burmese pythons. They're huge! They grow to be about 10-16 feet (roughly 3-5 meters), and can weigh up to 200 pounds (90 kilograms) - that's an absolutely massive animal in all parameters. Add in the fact that they wreaked havoc on 95% of the mammal population of this park in Florida, and you've got a real, large danger to deal with.

astro_nerd75 Okay, did ANYBODY have robot rabbits catching pythons on their bingo card?

andreagory Robot rabbit decoys? Actually pretty smart way to avoid trudging through swamps looking for pythons.

tooshpright Cool. At first I wondered if the robots exploded when eaten but no, they send a signal.

Daren_I Maybe the Energizer bunny can come out of retirement.

[deleted] OP Excerpt: They look, move and even smell like the kind of furry Everglades marsh rabbit a Burmese python would love to eat. But these bunnies are robots meant to lure the giant invasive snakes out of their hiding spots.

It's the latest effort by the South Florida Water Management District to eliminate as many pythons as possible from the Everglades, where they are decimating native species with their voracious appetites. In Everglades National Park, officials say the snakes have eliminated 95% of small mammals as well as thousands of birds.

"Removing them is fairly simple. It's detection. We're having a really hard time finding them,” said Mike Kirkland, lead invasive animal biologist for the water district. The water district and University of Florida researchers deployed 120

robot rabbits this summer as an experiment. Previously, there was an effort to use live rabbits as snake lures but that became too expensive and time-consuming, Kirkland said.

The robots are simple toy rabbits, but retrofitted to emit heat, a smell and to make natural movements to appear like any other regular rabbit. "They look like a real rabbit," Kirkland said.. They are solar powered and can be switched on and off remotely. They are placed in small pens monitored by a video camera that sends out a signal when a python is nearby.

"Then I can deploy one of our many contractors to go out and remove the python," Kirkland said. The total cost per robot rabbit is about $4,000, financed by the water district, he added.

SweetPotato Dingo Oh hey, I work in the lab that runs this project

Okay, okay, let's stop here for a second - an insider from this crazy project answering questions was definitely not what we thought we'd find, but hold your horses there for a second. You'll first need to read what they wrote, because not every aspect of this electro-bunny snake-hunting project is smooth. And that's okay, we're here to learn as well.

[deleted] OP Oh, cool. How is the project coming along currently?

Sweet Potato Dingo I can't speak too much on it since I'm not directly working on that research and my PI wouldn't appreciate that. All I can say is that we don't have any meaningful results yet, but we have new ideas for the next field season.

via SweetPotatoDingo

[deleted] OP Okay, I'll keep that in mind. Still, I wish you and the rest of the team all best of luck in removing the Pythons from Florida!

A well-earned wish. While pythons are animals themselves, they really do hurt so much of the local wildlife in Florida. There has to be some balance restored.