Python in River Bed

WATCH: Entire 5-Foot Alligator Found Inside Massive Burmese Python

Scientists are studying the remains of a massive Burmese python that swallowed an entire five-foot alligator in the Florida Everglades.

Rosie Moore, a geoscientist, recently shared with Inside Edition that she and her team got a call from some fieldworkers who were working with invasive vegetation after they found the bloated serpent. As recommended by the state, the workers euthanized the python. And Moore’s team collected the body.

The snake was 18 feet long. The longest a Burmese python can typically grow is 23 feet.

“You walk in the room, and the snake it just like going from one end of the room to the other,” Moore recalled. “And it’s just incredible to see in person.”

The Geoscientists Said the Both the Creatures Can be Equally as Powerful Predators

Moore said that the situation proves that both alligators and pythons can be equally as fierce. And it a battle between the two, the larger will usually come out the victor.

“People are always like, ‘who’s the top predator?’ And I always say, ‘that depends on where they’re at in their life cycle. If you have a small python and a very large gator, the large gator’s the apex predator there.”

Moore shared that there have been other reports of pythons managing to “consume” giant alligators in the wild. So while the Everglades story is shocking, it’s not unheard of.

However, the situation is still rare enough to constitute a complete study. Moving forward, Moore and her team will collect data samples. And once they finish, they’ll cut the creature open and “see what’s in there.”

The Giant Alligator was Rotting Inside the Python’s Body

Now This posted a follow-up interview by CNN that showcased what exactly happened once Rosie Moore was able to do a full autopsy, or necropsy, on the Burmese Python. And as Moore explained, it was a “gross” situation.

“I actually thought it was pretty gross, and I’m used to necropsies and things,” Moore admitted.

The giant alligator had started breaking down inside the python’s body, and it was “barely intact” by the time the team removed it. Because of its time inside the carcass, it “smelled terrible.”

“Oh my god, we were taking breaks,” Moore laughed. “We were running outside, trying to get fresh air. I’ve never smelled anything like that.”

Moore went on to explain that Florida officials encourage the killing of the Burmese python because it has been invading the state and devastating the fragile Everglades ecosystem.