Scientists have discovered a new type of cell that helps Burmese pythons digest the entire skeletons of their prey.

Pythons are capable of consuming prey far larger than their own heads thanks to highly flexible jaws and stretchable skin.

UC Professor Bruce Jayne poses with a Burmese python specimen with a 22-centimeter gape, right, compared to an even larger specimen with a 26-centimeter gape. Credit: Bruce Jayne UC Professor Bruce ...

The expression "so hungry I could eat a horse" might not be just a figure of speech — for the Burmese python, at least. It had long been thought that the size of the python's head and body allowed it ...

Burmese pythons in Florida can eat larger prey than scientists previously thought due to their ability to stretch their jaws. Researchers believe that understanding the size limits of prey that ...

As pythons grow, their feeding habits change. Hatchlings (newly hatched) and small juveniles eat small prey like crickets, lizards, and mice. As pythons grow larger, they eat bigger meals but feed ...

Massive invasive pythons kill deer, bobcats, otters, racoons, possums, rats, even alligators — pretty much anything that unwittingly ambles within striking distance. The problem is so severe that in ...

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – A new study conducted by biologists with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida reveals that Burmese pythons are capable of consuming larger prey than scientists previously realized ...

This Instagram post of a Burmese python eating a 77-pound white-tailed deer is quite horrifying. It teaches us a lot about ...

A reticulated python has already completed its hunt of this small deer and is in the process of constricting its prey.

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Just when you thought you knew everything about one of Florida's least-favorite invasive species, a surprise emerges. Scientists ...