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Blood Python: Python brongersmai
In the Wild
Description:
Size:
o Typically reach 4-6 ft (1.2-1.8 m) in length
o Can reach up to 9 ft (2.75 m) in length
Weight: Typically weigh 12-20 lbs. (5.4-9 kg), reported up to 45 lbs. (20.4 kg)
Are called blood pythons because of their reddish-rust coloration – which can be brickred in some individuals – with splotches and stripes of yellow, tan, and black
Have very thick, heavy, short bodies with a relatively short tail
Have long, flat, wide, dark grey or brown heads
Bellies are typically white, sometimes with black markings
Sexual dimorphism: Females are usually larger overall than males but males generally
have longer tails
Habitat and Range:
Are native to Southeast Asia in southern China, Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo
Normally live in rainforests and swamps, but may also be found in forests, open
woodland, plains, and dense stands of bamboo
Are also found on plantations, particularly on palm oil plantations where they hide
under piles of leaves and fronds trimmed from the palms
Spend much of their time in the water
Diet:
Carnivorous: Eat rodents such as mice and rats, and occasionally eat birds
Are non-venomous, constrictors
Adaptations:
Highly sensitive forked tongue and Jacobson’s organ
o Odor particles are collected by the forked tongue and transported back to the
Jacobson organ in the top of the mouth
o The Jacobson’s organ is a patch of sensory cells (chemoreceptor) that detects
both social chemical communication by pheromones and helps snakes hunt and
track their prey
Ambush predator – lie in wait, sometimes in a river or stream, for prey to get close
before striking
o Their cryptic coloration allows them to camouflage in order to hide from both
predators and prey
o Are able to remain motionless for long periods of time, from several days to a
week while waiting for prey to approach
o Use their eyes and tongues to sense their prey
o Also use heat-sensing pits in the upper lips to identify warm-blooded prey items
Constrictor
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Blood Python: Python brongersmai
o Grab prey with their teeth and wrap coils of their body around the prey and
squeeze – do not crush the prey and break bones but rather squeeze tightly so
that the prey cannot breathe and suffocates
o Can unhinge their jaw to swallow the prey whole utilizing rhythmic muscular
contractions that pull the prey down into the snake’s throat and stomach
o A special tube on the bottom of its mouth stays open to one side of the mouth
so they can breathe while swallowing
Lifespan:
About 15-20 years, can live up to 35 years of age
Ecosystem relationships:
Predators: Young individuals are susceptible to predation by hawks and other birds of
prey, other snakes, and crocodilians
Reproduction:
Reach sexual maturity at 2-3 years of age
Females lay up to 10-15 eggs about 3 months after mating
Unlike most snakes, the female remains with the eggs and incubates them by coiling
around them and “shivering” to keep them warm – incubation takes a great deal of
energy and can cause females to lose up to half of their body weight
The eggs hatch after about 2.5 months and the female leaves the hatchlings to fend for
themselves
Hatchlings are typically 15-18 in. long and are tan with black markings
Activity:
Nocturnal: Are most commonly seen at night, partially submerged on the edges of slowmoving rivers and streams or in pools while waiting for prey
Other “fun facts”:
Was previously called Python curtus brongersmai because it was thought to be a
subspecies of Python curtus – is now considered to be a separate species so is called
Python brongersmai
Also sometimes called short pythons, short-tailed pythons, red blood pythons, and
Malaysian red blood pythons
Molt/shed several times a year to accommodate growing
o Appears duller just before shedding and eyes become cloudy
o Will seek out and rub against rough surfaces to dislodge old skin
o Once a tear is made in the skin, will crawl out of old skin leaving a shed behind
o Appear more brightly colored after shedding
o Shedding typically takes a week or longer
Pits in the roof of the mouth suggest that pythons once were venomous snakes
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Blood Python: Python brongersmai
Conservation Status and Threats:
Listed on IUCN Red List as Least Concern
Listed on CITES Appendix II
Are threatened by:
o Over collection for the international pet trade
o Are often collected and killed for leather products – estimated that about
200,000 individuals are killed for their skins each year
Despite threats, populations are thought to be increasing in size because they are
successfully establishing populations in palm oil plantations which attract rodents
o Although the increase in palm oil plantations may benefit blood python
populations, a 2007 report by the United Nations Environment Program showed
that palm oil plantations are the leading source of rainforest destruction in
Malaysia and Indonesia, home of endangered animals such as orangutans and
Asian elephants
At the Zoo
Monty came to the Maryland Zoo from a private breeder in August 2012. He was hatched
around May 2012.
What We Can Do
Make environmentally responsible lifestyle decisions to help conserve habitat –
conserve energy, reduce litter, and pollution
o To help slow the destruction of tropical rainforests and to save endangered
wildlife such as the orangutan and Asian elephant, consumers can choose to
purchase products containing sustainable palm oil which are labeled with the
RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) trademark – visit
http://www.betterpalmoil.org/ for more information
Make sure you know the origin of the products you buy – buying something imported
illegally supports the black market by sustaining demand
o Ex. Rosewood is still being illegally imported from Madagascar despite bans on
logging because people are still buying it
Do your research before buying a pet
o Make sure you are not purchasing a wild-caught individual – captive-bred species
are often easy to find
o Make sure you know how to properly care for any animal before you decide to
buy it as a pet
 Some things to consider include adequate housing, diet, temperature
requirements, and lifespan
 Some pets also require a lot of time and money to be properly cared for
References:
http://www.denverzoo.org/downloads/animal_fact_sheets/Reptiles/Python_blood_.
pdf
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Blood Python: Python brongersmai
http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/192169/0
http://www.zoossa.com.au/adelaide-zoo/animalsexhibits/animals/reptiles?species=Blood%20Python
http://www.brandywinezoo.org/blood-python.html
http://www.betterpalmoil.org/
http://www.rspo.org/
Staffors, Peter J. Pythons and Boas. Neptune City: TFH Publications, Inc., 1986. Print.
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