They were on their morning commute. The snake they encountered was already dead

A couple found a dead Burmese python along U.S. 41 in northern Manatee County, according to media reports.

On Wednesday morning, Brooke Dawson and her husband, Chris, were driving along U.S. 41 when they spotted a 9-foot-6-inch Burmese python, she said. The python was dead and appeared to have been killed by a car.

“We found this morning on the side of the road on U.S. 41 next to the airport, across from Port Manatee,” Brooke Dawson posted on Facebook.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission officers came out and allowed the couple to keep the python’s hide, she wrote in another post to Facebook on Thursday. Dawson said she was looking forward to using it for a “DIY” project.

This story was originally published November 16, 2017 at 10:59 PM with the headline "They were on their morning commute. The snake they encountered was already dead."