Odd stories about the Sunshine State have often featured a "Florida man." However, in November 2021, it was a Florida mom who was highlighted in a new video on TikTok after she pulled a large snake from a car, which was later identified as a python.
The video was posted ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday by the Python Cowboy account, also known as "Trapper Mike." He also has a YouTube channel.
The person recording the video mentioned that he had just been bitten, and said: "Mike, you just got bit. What are you doing?"
A woman that "Trapper Mike" referred to as his mother was wearing an apron when she pulled the tail of the lengthy python while the son dislodged its head from one of the car's wheels.
When the snake was finally freed and slid toward her, she appeared to be out of breath, and said, "Oh, Michael." He responded: "Nice job, mom. You're a freakin' natural." The Florida python appeared to be at least 6 feet long.
The TikTok account posted the clip with the hashtag "#snakesgiving."
In the comments, "Trapper Mike" said he hunts pythons for a living. In the past, he posted numerous videos that showed his experience with wildlife.
The video of the Florida mother pulling the python out of the car wheel was viewed at least 5 million times. This total included a stitch of the video from another account.
Days before the video was posted, TheHill.com reported that "invasive Burmese pythons have officially been sighted making their way north in Florida." The news was also published by The Palm Beach Post. It's unclear where in the state the TikTok video was recorded.
We previously published a fact check about a claim that involved a "giant snake" being found on a road by construction workers. There was also another video about a purported giant anaconda that got stuck in a trap while going after a chicken. We even looked at a video about a kingsnake that was found to be swallowing a rattlesnake right next to a man's garage.
For more snake videos and fact checks about the slithering creatures, including more pythons from Florida, visit our previous reporting.