Indian Python

Fascinating facts about the Indian Python

• A 1990 study in Keoladeo National Park found that a quarter of Indian pythons measured between 2.7 m and 3.3 m, with two individuals stretching close to 3.6 m. Their size shows they are among the world’s biggest snakes despite being smaller than Burmese pythons.
• The longest scientifically recorded Indian python came from Pakistan at 4.6 m and tipped the scales at 52 kg.
• After swallowing a large meal, a python can go without food for up to two years, the longest fasting period ever recorded. This extreme pause reveals how the species stores energy and survives in environments where prey is unpredictable.
• Female Indian pythons can lay up to 100 eggs and even warm them above ambient temperature by shivering their muscles, a form of reptilian parental care.
• In the wild they can stay completely submerged for many minutes, swimming while preferring the water’s edge.

At a glance

About the Indian Python

The Indian python (Python molurus) is a heavyweight of the subcontinent’s wetlands and dry foothills, its sleek, whitish-to-yellowish skin mottled with tan, dark brown or reddish-brown blotches that shift with the terrain. In the mist-clad hills of the Western Ghats and Assam the snakes are darker, while the Deccan Plateau and Eastern Ghats host lighter individuals. Adults typically reach about 3 m (9 ft 10 in), though a 1990 study in Keoladeo National Park recorded a quarter of the population between 2.7 m and 3.3 m, and a few outliers stretched toward 3.6 m. The longest scientifically verified specimen, collected in Pakistan, measured 4.6 m (15 ft 1 in) and weighed 52 kg (114 lb 10 oz). Unlike its close relative the Burmese python, the Indian python bears light “eyes” within side spots, pink-tinged head stripes, and a blurred diamond spot on the front of the head, giving it a generally lighter, more arid-adapted appearance. A lethargic, water-loving ambush predator, the Indian python slides through grasslands, swamps, mangrove thickets and rocky foothills, often sheltering in abandoned mammal burrows or hollow trees. Its diet spans mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, with a marked preference for mammals such as rhesus macaques, spotted deer and wild boar recorded in Keoladeo National Park. After a massive meal the snake may fast for weeks, once recorded at two years, and can even disgorge its prey to escape danger. A surprising trait is its ability to raise its body temperature above the ambient environment through muscular contractions, an uncommon form of thermoregulation among reptiles, allowing it to incubate up to 100 eggs and give hatchlings a head start in the wild.

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