Pythonidae

The Pythonidae, commonly known as pythons, are a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia. Some of the largest snakes in the world belong to this group. There are ten genera and 39 species recognized today. Unlike venomous snakes, pythons catch their prey by squeezing it tightly with their muscular bodies. They then swallow their food whole.

Pythons live in warm parts of the Old World, including sub-Saharan Africa, tropical and subtropical Asia, and Australia. They hide and wait for their food, then wrap around it to kill it. Female pythons lay eggs, which they guard until the baby snakes hatch.

Pythons are sometimes taken from the wild for their beautiful skins, and their meat is eaten in some places. They can carry germs that might make people sick. In parts of Africa, pythons are important in stories and traditions.

Distribution and habitat

Pythons live in many warm places around the world, including sub-Saharan Africa, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Southeast Asia, southeastern Pakistan, southern China, the Philippines, and Australia.

Some pythons have been introduced to places where they do not naturally live. In the United States, Burmese pythons have become an invasive species in Everglades National Park since the late 1990s. These large snakes eat many local animals, such as birds, bobcats, and white-tailed deer. In Puerto Rico, there is also a population of reticulated pythons.

Conservation

Many python species have had big drops in their numbers because they have been hunted a lot. This includes the Indian python (Python molurus) and the ball python (Python regius), whose numbers have gone down a lot.

Behavior

Most pythons wait quietly and hidden before quickly grabbing animals that walk by. They often hunt when it is dark or in thick plants, using special heat-sensing pits along their jaws to find animals even in the dark.

When moving, pythons usually crawl slowly, using their belly scales and ribs for support. If threatened, some pythons, like the ball python, will curl into a tight ball with their head tucked inside to stay safe. While attacks on humans can happen, they are very rare.

Feeding

Pythons catch their food using sharp teeth in rows on their jaws. They wrap their bodies around the prey to hold it tightly. This squeezing stops the prey's heart, and the python then swallows its meal whole.

These snakes usually eat animals about the size of a housecat, but larger pythons can eat much bigger animals, like deer or even antelope. In rare cases, the reticulated python has been known to eat humans in parts of Indonesia. It can take days or weeks for a python to finish digesting a large meal.

Reproduction

Pythons lay eggs, unlike most boas that give birth to live babies. After laying their eggs, python mothers stay nearby to watch over them until they hatch. They can shake their muscles to create warmth, helping keep the eggs at the right temperature for the baby snakes to grow. While guarding their eggs, these mothers don’t eat and only leave sometimes to soak up sunlight and stay warm.

Captivity

Many python species can be kept as exotic pets. But people should be careful with larger pythons, because they can sometimes be unsafe.

Taxonomy

Pythons used to be grouped with boas in old classification systems. Now, scientists know they are more closely related to sunbeam snakes and the Mexican burrowing python. Even though pythons look similar to boas, they belong to their own special family called Pythonidae.

Genera

Pythons have ten different groups, called genera. There are 39 known species of pythons. These snakes live in Africa, Asia, and Australia. Some of them are among the largest snakes in the world.

Relationship with humans

Pythons have a special connection with humans, especially in trade and some traditions. Their skins are valued and traded around the world, sometimes illegally. Many come from Southeast Asia. People also hunt pythons for their meat, which is eaten locally. Their skin is used to make items like bags, belts, and shoes in Europe and North America.

Pythons can carry infections like salmonella, which can make humans sick. In some African cultures, python parts are used in traditional medicine. For example, in parts of Nigeria, python bodies and blood are thought to help with health issues. However, these uses can sometimes cause health problems because of diseases that might spread. In places where pythons are not native, like in Florida, they can change the local wildlife and possibly affect human health by influencing the animals mosquitoes feed on.

Folklore

In northwestern Ghana, people think pythons are protectors and have special rules to keep them safe. Their stories tell of a python that once helped villagers by looking like a log so they could cross a river safely.

In Benin, some traditions view pythons as symbols of strength and spirit. People there keep pythons in temples and give them offerings each year.