Pythons are a group of interesting and famous snakes. They are well known to be good pets as they often prefer the consistently warm temperatures that are found in houses. Some species, such as the jungle carpet python, make better pets than others. While many people know that pythons are a kind of snake, there are many fascinating facts that most people don’t know.
Pythons Can be Huge!
Some species of pythons are among the largest snake in the world. Reticulated pythons are the record holders for the longest snake, as they have been recorded up to 33 feet long and can weigh 200-300 lbs. While the reticulated python is the longest snake in the world, the boa family holds the record for the heaviest snake. The green anaconda can weigh up to 550 lbs. Another python species, the Burmese python, is also huge, as it can be up to 23 feet long and weigh up to 200 lbs.
Other members of the python family are not as large, such as the ball python and the green tree python, which grow to around 5 feet long. The smallest member of the python family is the pygmy python which is only 23 inches long!
Pythons are Never Venomous
Pythons are constrictors and none of the family are venomous. These predators are relatively slow-moving and are thus ambush predators, which means they wait quietly for prey to come along and catch them with a sudden strike.
Immediately after catching their prey, pythons tightly squeeze (or constrict) their victim. The prey dies of suffocation because when it breathes out, the python squeezes tighter, stopping it from taking another breath. The squeezing may also kill by cutting off the circulation to the brain. After killing their prey, pythons swallows it whole through a system of muscular contractions. They can disjoint their jaw to allow their mouth to stretch around the large animals they eat.
Pythons are rarely dangerous to humans. Although there have been instances of a very large specimen killing and even eating humans, it is incredibly unusual. For the most part, pythons eat animals such as rodents, other reptiles, and birds. Larger pythons eat mammals such as deer, pigs, and monkeys.
Pythons are Native to Three Continents
Pythons are found naturally on three continents, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. They are called Old World snakes because they aren’t found in North or South America, other than invasive individuals. Throughout this range, they are usually found in tropical areas and prefer humid warm locations. Many live in rainforests, but they can also be found in wooded areas, grasslands, and swamps.
Ball Pythons Are a Favorite Pet
Ball pythons are considered the most popular pet snake in America. While they are cheap and easy to find, they aren’t always the easiest snake to care for. They have specific temperature and humidity requirements that must be maintained for them to be healthy. They can also be picky eaters, refusing to eat for weeks or refusing to eat anything but live animals. On the other hand, they are relatively calm and easy to handle, preferring to curl into a ball rather than fight when they are threatened. They also stay relatively small compared to some species of the family.
There Are a Lot of Different Pythons
While most people are aware of the more well-known species of python, there are around 40 different kinds. Around 15 of these live in Australia, which means they amount to nearly a quarter of the species of snakes found there. The largest pythons, the reticulated and Burmese pythons, are native to Asia.
Pythons Don’t Slither
Pythons don’t slither in the characteristic back-and-forth motion most people associate with snakes. Instead, they use their scales to push their way forward in a straight line. This energy-saving method helps these large animals move, but they are slow compared with other snakes and can only move around 1 mile an hour.
Pythons VS Boas
Pythons and boas are related families and are similar in some ways, but there are also some important differences between them. Both types of snakes can be large, and these two families alone claim all of the top-ten animals on the list of largest snakes. Both pythons and boas are ambush predators and constrictors. They are typically found in tropical areas and members of both families have two lungs rather than the more common snake feature of only having one lung. Both boas and pythons have heat-sensing organs in their face, allowing them to sense and “see” heat patterns.
Pythons are different than boas in a few ways. Other than introduced individuals, pythons are not found in North or South America. Boas can be found in both the New and Old World.
One of the biggest and most important differences between these two groups is the way they reproduce. Pythons lay eggs in large clutches, which they then watch over. If it gets too cold, some pythons will brood or warm their eggs by surrounding them with their body and shivering to raise the temperature. This takes a lot of energy and pythons can lose a lot of weight in this way. Boas, on the other hand, give live birth to their babies. They are ovoviviparous, meaning they still produce eggs but rather than lay them, they shelter the eggs inside their body until they are ready to hatch.
