Dusty Crum was born on May 31, 1980, in Sarasota, Florida, and grew up in rural parts of Sarasota County. Details about his parents, family background, and education have not been verified.
Python hunting in the Florida Everglades
Dusty Crum has worked as a full-time python hunter and environmental contractor in South Florida since 2013, spending most of his time locating, capturing, and removing invasive Burmese pythons from the Everglades. He is one of a small group of hunters selected for the South Florida Water Management District’s Python Elimination Program, a state initiative that pays bounties and hourly wages for python removals.
Crum was one of 25 hunters chosen from more than 1,000 applicants. The program pays roughly $50 for the first four feet of each snake and $25 for every additional foot. He hunts by hiking barefoot through the swamp and wrangling large constrictors by hand. In 2017, he caught a 16-foot-10 python carrying 73 eggs, one of the largest recorded snakes removed from the Everglades. Since 2013, Crum and his team have removed thousands of pythons.
Crum describes himself as a protector of native wildlife rather than a hunter. “I’m not really a hunter, I’m a protector of the Everglades. I’ve never actually killed a python,” he told reporters. He bags the snakes for biologists to euthanize and salvages their meat and skins for use. His hands-on approach avoids weapons and heavy gear. He moves quietly through the terrain and also uses a trained snake-sniffing beagle to locate hidden pythons.
| Facts | Details |
|---|---|
| Name | Dusty Crum |
| Birthday | May 31, 1980 |
| Birthplace | Sarasota, Florida |
| Profession | Python hunter, wildlife-removal contractor, TV personality, and entrepreneur |
| Python Hunting Since | 2013 |
| Primary Hunting Area | Florida Everglades |
| Specialty | Capturing and removing invasive Burmese pythons |
| Python Elimination Program | Selected as one of 25 hunters from more than 1,000 applicants |
| Notable Python Catch | A 16-foot-10 python carrying 73 eggs in 2017 |
| Florida Python Challenge | Won in 2016 with the Cypress Boys after capturing 33 snakes |
| Guardians of the Glades | Starred in the Discovery Channel series, which premiered in May 2019 |
| Swamp People | Joined the History Channel series in 2019 for season 10 |
| Orchid Envy | Operates an orchid nursery and retail business with Natalee McKinney |
| Other Business Ventures | Wildman’s Pizza, Pasta & Pythons and Python Wildman |
| Net Worth | Not publicly disclosed or officially verified |
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Joining the cast of Guardians of the Glades
Crum’s local recognition led to a starring role in Discovery Channel’s Guardians of the Glades, which premiered in May 2019. The reality series presents him as a professional Everglades guide and chief snake hunter whose “life mission” is to protect the ecosystem from invasive pythons.
In each episode, Crum leads a team of specialists, fellow hunters, conservationists, and survival experts on nighttime expeditions through the swamps. The series features his distinctive hunting style, including going barefoot to feel the ground, while documenting his crew’s work. They catch snakes, record each find using GPS and biological data, and process the carcasses.
Crum records the location, size, and even the stomach contents of every captured snake to improve future removal efforts. He also preserves the skins and meat. In interviews, he has described pythons as “beautiful creatures” and said he “tries to utilize every piece that I can” out of respect for the animal.
The series presents Crum and his team as part of a professional wildlife-removal operation. He notes that they were among the people paid by the state to hunt pythons, with only 25 hunters selected from 1,000 applicants. Guardians of the Glades made Crum nationally recognizable as the Everglades’ top python wrangler and documented his daily responsibilities as a wildlife-removal contractor.
Competing in the Florida Python Challenge
Before appearing on reality television, Crum gained attention through Florida’s annual Python Challenge, a state-sponsored month-long hunt on public lands aimed at removing as many Burmese pythons as possible.
Crum became involved in 2013, when National Geographic filmed the first Python Challenge competition in the Everglades. His team, nicknamed the “Cypress Boys,” caught more pythons than most competitors and finished second in the inaugural challenge. The result strengthened his reputation and led to further opportunities.
In 2016, the Cypress Boys returned and won the contest outright, capturing 33 snakes and bringing in the longest python of that year’s event. The competitions also gave Crum opportunities to refine his tracking and capture techniques.
Speaking about the challenge, he emphasized its environmental purpose: “What’s important to me is helping the small mammals… it’s a way to make an impact on the environment.” His performances in the Python Challenge raised his profile and demonstrated his efficiency. Media reports noted that his team often caught the most snakes and received bonus payments for finding nesting pythons with eggs. The competitions became an important part of his career and led directly to his later selection as a full-time elimination-program contractor.
Expanding into alligator hunting in Louisiana
Crum’s television and hunting career later expanded into alligator country. In 2019, he joined the cast of History Channel’s Swamp People for its 10th season as a newcomer gator hunter from Pierre Part, Louisiana. The role took him beyond python hunting as he learned traditional Louisiana alligator-hunting methods and faced American alligators with the same fearless attitude he applies to snakes.
He later appeared in season 3 of the spin-off series Swamp People: Serpent Invasion, which combined alligator and python hunting themes. Crum tackled the bayou environment and large gators, with one account noting that he “battled gators” on Swamp People. Despite his python expertise, he treated alligator hunting as a new learning experience and worked alongside veteran Louisiana swampers.
Crum also applied his capture skills to alligators during Louisiana’s month-long gator hunting season. His work contributed to the livelihoods of local trappers and involved handling both invasive and nuisance reptiles. After a serious vehicle accident in 2021 that nearly cost him his leg, he returned to python and gator trapping following his recovery.
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Building Orchid Envy and python-skin enterprises
Alongside his hunting career, Crum has developed a side business in Florida. He and his long-time partner, Natalee McKinney, bought a wholesale orchid nursery and rebranded it as Orchid Envy. They operate a greenhouse and retail shop in Venice, Florida, selling orchids and decorative plants.
Crum divides his time between the swamp and the store. He typically spends most nights tracking snakes and returns home only a couple of days a week to oversee the orchid business. He has also incorporated python hunting into his entrepreneurial activities.
Under state rules, captured snakes must be euthanized, and Crum arranges for the carcasses to be delivered to authorities. He supplements his income by selling the valuable skins to leather dealers. The 16-foot snake he caught in 2017 earned him a $375 bounty, along with additional income from selling its hide.
Crum personally cooks and eats the snake meat and turns the skins into wallets, belts, and other leather goods. He has worked with local craftsmen, including designer Nikki Sedacca, to create high-end python-leather accessories and promote them as awareness tools. “They are beautiful creatures,” he says, and wearing or displaying python leather helps him spark conversations about the threat posed by the invasive snakes.
Orchid Envy and its allied enterprises also support Crum’s conservation work. He uses the exotic appeal of python skin to raise funds and attention for Everglades conservation, reinvesting proceeds, including through special exhibits or donation programs, into the python-removal effort.
Throughout his career, Dusty Crum has combined hands-on wildlife removal with media outreach and business ventures. His roles range from state-paid python hunter to reality-TV star and entrepreneur. He remains active in the Florida swamp, continuing to capture Burmese pythons each season while exploring new challenges such as Louisiana gator hunting. Across these roles, his professional focus has remained consistent: using his skills to control invasive reptiles and protect native ecosystems.
Dusty Crum Net Worth
As of 2026, Dusty Crum’s net worth has not been publicly disclosed or officially verified. Crum’s documented income streams stem from his professional python hunting and related ventures. He earns compensation under Florida’s government-sponsored Burmese python removal program, receiving per-snake bounties and related incentives. He also derives revenue from appearances on cable reality television series, including History Channel’s Swamp People: Serpent Invasion and Discovery Channel’s Guardians of the Glades, although his specific earnings from these media roles are not disclosed. Additionally, Crum operates a Florida restaurant, Wildman’s Pizza, Pasta & Pythons, and markets python-skin leather goods through his “Python Wildman” venture. Financial details for these businesses and his exact income figures have not been made public.
FAQs
What is Dusty Crum best known for?
Dusty Crum is best known for removing invasive Burmese pythons from the Florida Everglades and appearing on wildlife reality television.
When did Dusty Crum start working as a full-time python hunter?
Dusty Crum has worked as a full-time python hunter and environmental contractor in South Florida since 2013.
What television shows has Dusty Crum appeared on?
Dusty Crum has appeared on Discovery Channel’s Guardians of the Glades, History Channel’s Swamp People, and Swamp People: Serpent Invasion.
Has Dusty Crum won the Florida Python Challenge?
Yes. His team, the “Cypress Boys,” won the 2016 Florida Python Challenge after capturing 33 snakes.
What is Orchid Envy?
Orchid Envy is a wholesale orchid nursery and retail business in Venice, Florida, operated by Dusty Crum and his long-time partner, Natalee McKinney.
