More big ’n’ small pythons

After a week’s break (giving a ‘breather’ to those who do not like seeing them, leave alone reading about them) we are back with the final article on pythons this week. We hope to feature more interesting articles on snakes in our future issues. So, those of you who enjoy reading about these creepy crawlies, be on the lookout....

Children’s python

When you read the name you are bound to think that the python is so named because it is child-friendly and docile enough to be kept as a pet, even by small children. However, this is not the case.

The python, which is a native of Australia, has been so named in honour of an English naturalist and curator of the zoology section of the British Museum named John George Children, who lived in the 19th century.

The children’s python (Antaresia childreui) which is also called the faded python is considered to be one of the smallest pythons in Australia and the second smallest python in the world with the pygmy or anthill python (featured on May 11) holding the record as the smallest.

The children’s python belongs to the same group of small pythons which has four recognised species, including the pygmy python.Not more than 90 cm in length, the children’s python is reddish brown in colour. Its head is relatively short. Its crown scales are enlarged. But, its body scales are smooth and small.

This nocturnal python’s diet includes birds and small mammals, especially microbats. As microbats are found in abundance in stalactite(lime deposits like icicles on roof) caves, the python catches its prey by dangling from the stalactites and snatching them out of the air as they fly past.

The female lays about 25 eggs in a clutch and incubates them for seven weeks, coiling protectively around the eggs, like all python mums do.

The python hatchlings however do not get their mother’s protection because python mums only protect the eggs and not their newborn babies. The children’s python which is known to survive up to as much as 30 years in captivity, if well cared for, is often kept as a pet due to its ‘good nature’. The python is found in most parts of Australia in habitats ranging from coastal reinforests to arid plains.

Woma python

This non-venomous snake which is also known as Ramsay’s python or sand python is endemic to Australia. Two different populations exist; one in the south western part, extending up to the coast of India, and the other in Central Australia, including the Northern Territories, South Australia and Queensland. The pythons found in the latter area are the only ones available to collectors from North America.

Reaching lengths of three metres, it has a broad, flattish body with a tail that tapers to a point. The head is narrow and the eyes are small.

The 50-65 rows of dorsal scales at mid-body are smooth. There are 280-315 ventral scales, an undivided anal plate and 40-45 single subcaudal (at the tail) scales.

The python has a pale brown to black background colour in general, but it could vary from olive to lighter shades of orange, pink and red, which is overlaid with darker or brindled markings.

The belly area is cream coloured like in most other species of pythons. Sometimes the underside is yellow with brown and pinkish blotches. The scales round the eyes are darker than that of the head.

It is considered unusual in both appearance and behaviour. Mostly nocturnal, this python could be found hiding in hollows of trees and burrows during the day time. Its diet consists mostly of rodents and reptiles.

In fact, it is noted for raiding rodent nests and attacking the prey by crushing them against the walls with its body. Most often it ends up with scratches on its body because the victim is not killed instantly. It also eats venomous reptiles, having developed an immunity to their venom.

In order to get into burrows, it turns its head on the side similar to the shape of the number seven and becomes rigid. Then it digs its way in. When it wants to come out, sometimes it ‘eats’ its way out. It can also burrow into the sand to escape from predators or to protect itself from the heat and cold.

The female lays 4-28 eggs in a clutch anywhere as long as it’s hidden and humid enough to prevent the eggs from drying. Rabbit warrens and hollows in logs are popular places to lay their eggs which are incubated over a period of 50-70 days, in typical python fashion.

Woma pythons are one of the easiest of snakes to handle. Because of the python’s docile nature it has become a popular exotic pet. However, it is considered an endangered species mostly due to loss of habitat.

Ringed python

This is a small python which is also known as the Bismark ringed python found in the Island of New Britain and New Ireland near New Guinea (in the Bismark archipelago - a chain of small islands off the eastern coast).

Reaching lengths of 152-183 cm (5-6 ft) its colour pattern consists of a series of black and brilliant orange (neon effect) rings in juveniles which turn to a shade of golden brown and black in adults.

The juveniles and adults too are highly iridescent(exhibiting changing colours like a rainbow). Some don’t have any markings despite its name.It is found in rain forests and open or cultivated areas sometimes in piles of coconut husks. Its head which is black is marked with a light coloured spot behind the eye, and its body is slender.

One of the most distinct python species, it is fast moving and sometimes defensive when threatened or frightened. The female lays up to 12 eggs and incubates them.

The ringed python is mostly nocturnal. Like most pythons, it too eats rodents, for which it actively forages, sometimes venturing into houses and agricultural structures.The genus comprises one species and should not be confused with any of the Australian python species.

Amethyst python

The largest snake in Australia, with no recognised subspecies, the amethyst python (Morelia amethistina) is also found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Commonly known as the scrub python (it grows to a length of about 3-5 m (10-16 ft) on average, but some have been recorded to be 8.5 m (28 ft) in length.

In comparison to its length, the python is rather slender-bodied and as a result, cannot kill large animals like its relatives in Asia and Africa.

The python is yellowish-brown or a shade of olive with faint dark brown or black bands, stripes or blotches. What gives it its name are the milky-purple and bluish coloured scales that produce an attractive shimmering effect, especially in sunlight.

Its diet comprises small mammals including fruit bats, rats and possums and other warm blooded creatures. It has a series of pits along its jaws which are highly heat sensitive and enable it to hunt warm-blooded prey.

The amethyst python is found in dense forests along streams and rivers, in scrublands or in mangrove swamps. It can move through the upper canopy of the forest as easily as it moves on the forest floor. It’s largely nocturnal.

The female lays 12-20 eggs once or twice a year and incubates them over a period of two months. Once the eggs are hatched, she leaves the hatchlings to take care of themselves.