It looks, moves, and even smells like the kind of furry Everglades swamp rabbit that a Burmese python likes to eat. But these rabbits are robots meant to lure giant invasive snakes out of hiding. It’s a new initiative by the South Florida Water Management District to remove as many snakes as possible from the Everglades, where they are decimating native species with their voracious appetite. In Everglades National Park, officials say the snakes have wiped out 95% of small mammals, as well as thousands of birds. “It’s very simple to remove,” explained Mike Kirkland, the water district’s senior invasive animal biologist. “It’s all about detection. We have great difficulty finding them. They camouflage themselves very well on the ground.” The water agency and researchers at the University of Florida deployed 120 robotic rabbits last summer as an experiment. Previously, there had been efforts to use live rabbits as snake bait, but that had become too expensive and time-consuming, Kirkland said. The robots are simple toy rabbits, but they are adapted to emit heat, smell and make natural movements to look like any other normal rabbit. “They look like a real rabbit,” Kirkland said. Solar powered and can be turned on and off remotely. They are placed in small enclosures that are monitored by a video camera that sends a signal when the snake is nearby. “Then I can send one of our many contractors to come out and remove the snake,” Kirkland said. He added that the total cost of the robotic rabbit is about $4,000, funded by the water district.
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