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A team of biologists recently hauled in the heaviest Burmese python ever captured in Florida, US officials have said.

The female python weighed in at 98kg, was nearly five metres long, and had 122 developing eggs, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida said in a news release.

The team used radio transmitters transplanted in male "scout" snakes to study python movements, breeding behaviors and habitat use, said Ian Bartoszek, wildlife biologist and environmental science project manager for the conservancy's program.

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"How do you find the needle in the haystack? You could use a magnet, and in a similar way our male scout snakes are attracted to the biggest females around," Bartoszek said.

The team used a scout snake named Dionysus — or Dion for short — in an area of the western Everglades.

"We knew he was there for a reason, and the team found him with the largest female we have seen to date."

Biologist Ian Easterling and intern Kyle Findley helped capture the female snake and haul it through the woods to the field truck.

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A necropsy also found hoof cores in the snake's digest system, meaning that an adult white-tailed deer was its last meal.

National Geographic documented the discovery, highlighting the continued impact of the invasive pythons, which are known for rapid reproduction and depletion of surrounding native wildlife.

Bartoszek said removal of female pythons plays a critical role in disrupting the breeding cycle.

"This is the wildlife issue of our time for southern Florida," he said.

Since the conservancy's python program began in 2013, they've removed over 1000 pythons from approximately 25,900 hectares in southwest Florida.

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Over that stretch, necropsies have found dozens of white-tailed deer inside Burmese pythons. Data researchers at the University of Florida have documented 24 species of mammals, 47 species of birds and two reptile species from pythons' stomachs.

Prior to the recent discovery, the largest female removed through the conservancy's program weighed 84kg and was the heaviest python captured at the time in Florida, officials said.

The state's python removal program runs for two weeks in August. Participants compete for prizes, including US$2500 ($3627) for capturing the most pythons.

Last year's challenge involved more than 600 people from 25 states.

A large kitchen knife has been found at the scene where multiple people were stabbed in Auckland, New Zealand this morning.

A witness told Stuff people were screaming and being stabbed at random.

Ambulance service St John said that five people have been injured and four of those people were taken to Auckland Hospital.

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However, police later confirmed four people were wounded, and suffered "moderate" injuries.

One person has been taken into custody by police.

Superintendent Naila Hassan praised members of the public for intervening, saying the incident could have been a lot worse.

It appeared to be a random attack, with no indications of a hate crime.

Hassan said less than 10 minutes had passed between police being alerted and the suspect being arrested.

Issac Hong, an employee at CafeBayBay in Murrays Bay, told Stuff there was a woman stabbed at the bus stop across the road from his cafe.

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Hong said the alleged stabber then ran onto Murrays Bay beach, and attacked an "older Asian couple".

Hong said he was told by witnesses in the area that the alleged stabber ran to Mairangi Bay, and was chased down by construction workers from a nearby worksite.

According to Hong, police were able to apprehend the alleged attacker in Mairangi Bay.

A lady on her morning walk with a dog said the construction worker used his crutches to stop the alleged stabber.

She saw a man in a hoodie came out of Seaton Road and began stabbing people.

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The man chased after a 17-year-old girl who screamed, she said.

"We thought she was being silly, she was shrieking," she said.

"He stabbed two people, totally random… it all happened very quickly."

She was only 20 metres away from the man at one point.

"He then tried to stab another teenage girl, but she got away," she said.

Police said they were still working to confirm the number of injured.

"People screaming. Everything happen so fast. People running, and the cops was there in the same time with big guns, and they have someone in the floor in that moment," said local woman Maria Paz Tapia.

Another Mairangi Bay local said she saw "quite a few police" in the area.

"I saw three or four passing by here towards Murrays Bay and an ambulance as well," he said.

Police have placed diversions around the incident, and are asking people to avoid the area.

Mothers who were at the beach with their kids for a play date at around 10.30am said a lady came and told them to take their kids and run.

Straight after that, another man ran towards them and yelled the same.

"At first I thought it was a tsunami, or something like because we're at the beach," Dianne Hilbourne said.

She had her three-year-old son with her.

"We just left everything and ran."

Alexandra Bate was also with the playgroup with her five-year-old daughter and one-year-old son.

"We just ran. Straight to the houses where we knew we'd be safe. We didn't know what was happening," she said.

The group of mum and their kids came out to safety when they saw police arriving.

Hilbourne said she saw a man lying on the ground at the car park.

"I think he was one of the victims, I couldn't tell," she said.

"It's been a day, we thought it was just a day at the beach, you know?"

Local councillor Chris Darby said his "heart aches for the family and friends of the victims and what they are going through".

"I can assure the community there is no harm to anyone else, police have apprehended the attacker with the help of brave locals," Darby said, referring to the construction workers that intervened.

"It is extremely brave to put themselves at risk like they did."

East Coast Bays MP Erica Standford said Murrays Bay was a small community that would be feeling the impact of the attack.

"I'm confident that the police have apprehended the person of interest," she said.

National police spokesman and MP Mark Mitchell said what had unfolded near a usually peaceful beach was "tragic".

This story first appeared on Stuff and is republished here with permission.

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A Queensland grandmother has been assaulted and tied up in her living room after her home was broken into yesterday afternoon.

Angie Browne, 49, had been in the bedroom of her Mount Cotton Road home in Sheldon, north of Brisbane, at around midday when she heard the intrusion.

Detective inspector Steve Hollands from Queensland Police said Browne had heard the sound of her property being smashed and had gone to investigate, when she was assaulted by the offender.

"She observed a male offender in the kitchen area," he said.

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"This offender saw the victim, and chased her down the hall as she tried to take refuge in the bathroom.

"She was assaulted by this offender, which caused her to blackout temporarily."

Hollands said the man, believed to be in his 20s, then grabbed the Browne by the hair and took her to the kitchen where she was physically assaulted again.

"She was then dragged into the lounge room where she was tied up with cable ties around her hands, and she was secured to a piece of furniture," he said.

"The offender took her mobile phone away, and put it outside of the house."

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The grandmother believed there was a second man involved as she heard voices, however said she did not see him and could not describe what he looked like.

Inspector Hollands said she remained tied up, unable to seek help until a family member came to the home.

"The victim remained tied up with the cable ties until approximately 2:52pm when a family member returned home, heard moaning, saw things were out of place, and came across the victim," Hollands said.

"The victim was taken to the Redlands Hospital. She was distressed and she was suffering from bruising, soreness and cuts."

A crime scene has been established at the house.

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Police said it's unclear if anything was stolen from the home with investigations ongoing.

Hollands said while break and enters are common these particularly circumstances are "very rare".

Police were treating the break-in as a random incident and are currently searching for the perpetrator, described as being in his early to mid 20s, tall and slim.

He was wearing a bum bag, baseball cap and hoodie at the time of the attack.

Anyone with information is urged to come forward to police.

"This is the most cowardly type of offence that we can investigate," Hollands said.

"We've got an innocent lady going about her business in her own home, and we have a person or persons breaking into her home and assaulting her.

"As you can imagine, a very distressing time for her, and we'll be very cognizant of her, not only her physical wellbeing, but her emotional, and her mental health."

The man jailed for stabbing a teenager on the NSW Central Coast dozens of times as she walked home from school has been granted parole.

Tania Burgess was aged 15 when she was murdered in the frenzied attack in 2005. Her parents, Mandy and Chris, ran to help their daughter but she died in their arms.

They have been pushing to have the identity of her killer, known only as "DL", made public. It was protected as he was under the age of 18 at the time of the murder.

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The killer, who has now spent more of his life inside jail than out of it, will have to abide by 15 conditions and will be monitored around the clock by an electronic anklet.

Tania' mum spoke to 2GB' Ben Fordham yesterday ahead of the parole decision.

"It's hard to think Tania's killer will be out there and could put another family through what we have been through," she said.

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https://omny.fm/shows/ben-fordham-full-show/parents-of-murdered-teen-speak-out-ahead-of-killer/embed

Move over, GameStop and AMC. And forget about bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Revlon, the struggling makeup and cosmetics company that filed for bankruptcy last week, is the latest meme stock craze among the army of individual investors on Reddit.

Shares of Revlon soared nearly 35 per cent Wednesday afternoon in volatile trading.

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The stock is now up more than 300 per cent in just the past three sessions, from about $2 to about $8, after falling 13 per cent on the day the company announced its Chapter 11 reorganisation plan.

Revlon's stock surge is eerily reminiscent of what happened with rental car company Hertz in 2020 after it filed for bankruptcy.

Shares initially soared thanks in part to positive mentions from traders on Reddit, who were betting against short sellers that thought Hertz stock would continue to fall further.

When a company declares bankruptcy, most investors typically don't get anything from the ensuing reorganisation.

Bondholders and other creditors are often first in line to get back some of their money, but holders of the stock usually have their investments wiped out once new shares are issued post-bankruptcy.

Which makes the surge in Revlon all the more peculiar.

Some posters on Reddit's popular WallStreetBets board were even speculating about how much higher Revlon shares might go.

One Reddit user named pikatruuu, sorta like the yellow Pokemon character, noted the comparison to Hertz, saying that rental car giant's shares surged eightfold during its bankruptcy process.

"Revlon is currently the 11th most shorted stock … It is a pretty iconic brand. Is there a chance it becomes a meme stock?" pikatruuu wrote.

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Then again, pikatruuu also pointed out that what happened with Hertz "is a rare occasion of course."

That hasn't stopped some extremely enthusiastic users from pumping the stock's prospects.

"Is Revlon the Gamestop of 2022?," asked wonderwoman009.

"No idea. But the party is happening now," pikartruuu responded, adding that "if this [subreddit] can hop on the train, I don't see why it doesn't go past $10."

Others were even more bullish, expressing their love for the stock with posts in ALL CAPS.

"REVLON TO THE MOON GOING TO $12," said a user named One-Relationship-143.

But there appeared to be at least one voice of reason discussing Revlon on Reddit.

"If you had money you were just gonna burn for something to do," wrote Electronic-Ad6420, "then yes, you should buy some."