Threats
habitat loss through land cleared for farming, illegal
hunting for skin
STATUS:
ESA -- ENDANGERED
(as subspecies molurus)
IUCN -- NEAR THREATENED
SIZE:
Length:
Up to 21 feet (6.5 m)
HABITAT:
Scrubland, rocky hillsides
POPULATION:
Unknown
CONSERVATION:
CITES trade restrictions
The wonderful patterns seen on snake skins are formed like a mosaic: each pattern element is made up of hundreds of separate scales, each of which is a single color.
The popularity of python-skin boots, belts, wallets, and other popular fashion accessories has also contributed to population decline. The animals are also prized as a food item and source of medicine in some Asian cultures.
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Feared and Favored
The Indian python is one of the world's largest snakes, sometimes reaching lengths of more than 20 feet. Pythons prey on birds and other reptiles, but they prefer small mammals, such as rats. In many parts of their remaining natural range, pythons keep rodent populations in check -- a valuable ecological role that is generally unappreciated by local human inhabitants. Pythons -- like snakes everywhere -- tend to be regarded as dangerous and are often killed on sight. But the major threat to the Indian python is a familiar one: loss of habitat to expanding human populations. Their favorite habitat was scrub land, considered waste land by local people. But with the introduction of modern farming methods in India, such areas are being converted for agricultural use. One subspecies of the Indian python is now considered endangered, and trade in pythons and their products is prohibited by CITES.
Pythons are fairly docile creatures, even in the wild. In captivity they are easily managed and easy to breed. Indian pythons undoubtedly have a well-assured future as zoo attractions. But -- as with all living things -- it is the wild population that is the ultimate reservoir of genetic variation and it is the wild population that is succumbing to human pressures.
Amazing Mothers
The female Indian python lays as many as 60 eggs
at a time, usually in rock crevices or tree holes. The mother remains with her clutch throughout the
100-day incubation period, leaving the nest only to drink. She warms the eggs by controlling her body temperature, which she seems to accomplish by constricting or twitching her muscles.
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