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{{Taxobox
| image = Pratik jain dahod python.JPG
| image_caption = Near [[Nagarhole National Park]]
| status = NT
| status_system = iucn3.1
| regnum = [[Animalia]]
| phylum = [[Chordata]]
| subphylum = [[Vertebrata]]
| classis = [[Reptilia]]
| ordo = [[Squamata]]
| subordo = [[Serpentes]]
| familia = [[Pythonidae]]
| genus = ''[[Python (genus)|Python]]''
| species = '''''P. molurus'''''
| binomial = ''Python molurus''
| binomial_authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| range_map = Python molurus Area.svg
| range_map_caption = Distribution of Indian python
| synonyms = * [''Coluber''] ''Molurus'' [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]]
* ''Boa Ordinata'' [[Johann Gottlob Schneider|Schneider]], 1801
* ''Boa Cinerae'' [[Johann Gottlob Schneider|Schneider]], 1801
* ''Boa Castanea'' [[Johann Gottlob Schneider|Schneider]], 1801
* ''Boa Albicans'' [[Johann Gottlob Schneider|Schneider]], 1801
* ''Boa Orbiculata'' [[Johann Gottlob Schneider|Schneider]], 1801
* ''Coluber Boaeformis'' [[George Shaw|Shaw]], 1802
* ''Python bora'' [[François Marie Daudin|Daudin]], 1803
* ''Python tigris'' [[François Marie Daudin|Daudin]], 1803
* ''Python tigris castaneus'' <br>- [[François Marie Daudin|Daudin]], 1803
* ''Python tigris albanicus'' [sic] <br>- [[François Marie Daudin|Daudin]], 1803
* ''Python ordinatus'' - [[François Marie Daudin|Daudin]], 1803
* ''Python Javanicus'' [[Heinrich Kuhl|Kuhl]], 1820
* ''Python molurus'' - [[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1842
* ''Python Jamesonii'' [[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1842
* ''Python'' (''Asterophis'') ''tigris'' <br>- [[Leopold Fitzinger|Fitzinger]], 1843
* ''Python molurus'' - [[George Albert Boulenger|Boulenger]], 1893
* ''Python molurus'' [''molurus''] <br>- [[Franz Werner|F. Werner]], 1899
* [''Python molurus''] var. ''ocellatus'' <br>[[Franz Werner|F. Werner]], 1899
* [''Python molurus''] var. ''intermedia'' <br>[[Franz Werner|F. Werner]], 1899
* ''Python molurus molurus'' <br>- [[Olive Griffith Stull|Stull]], 1935
* ''Python molurus'' - [[Malcolm Arthur Smith|M.A. Smith]], 1943
* ''Python molurus pimbura'' [[Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala|Deraniyagala]], 1945
* ''Python molurus molurus'' <br>- Stimson, 1969
* [''Python molurus''] var. [''molurus''] <br>- Deuve, 1970
* ''Python molurus'' - Kluge, 1993<ref name="McD99">McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).</ref>
}}

'''''Python molurus''''' is a large nonvenomous [[Pythonidae|python]] [[species]] found in many tropic and subtropic areas of the [[Indian Subcontinent]] and [[Southeast Asia]]. It is known by the common names '''Indian python''',<ref name="ITIS">{{ITIS |id=202187 |taxon=''Python molurus'' |accessdate=13 September 2007}}</ref> '''black-tailed python'''<ref name="Dit33">Ditmars RL. 1933. Reptiles of the World. Revised Edition. The MacMillan Company. 329 pp. 89 plates.</ref> and '''Indian rock python'''. The species is limited to Southern Asia. It is generally lighter colored than the [[Burmese python]] and reaches usually {{convert|3|m|ft|sigfig=2}}.<ref name=Nat.Hist.Soc.1912/>

==Common names==
Indian python,<ref name="ITIS"/> black-tailed python,<ref name="Dit33"/> Indian rock python, Asian rock python.<ref name="Walls">Jerry G. Walls: "The Living Pythons";T. F. H. Publications, 1998: pp. 131-142; ISBN 0-7938-0467-1</ref><ref name="O'Shea">Mark O’Shea: „Boas and Pythons of the World“; New Holland Publishers, 2007; pp 80-87; ISBN 978-1-84537-544-7</ref> Referred to as "''Ajingar''" in [[Nepali language|Nepali]],"''Ajgar''" in [[Hindi]] and Marathi,"Ajagara" in Odiya, "''Azdaha''" in [[Urdu]] and "''অজগর (Awjogor)''", "''মেঘডম্বুর (Meghdombur)''" & "''মেগডুম (Megdum)''" in [[Bengali language|Bengali]], Malai pambhu (மலைப் பாம்பு) in tamil. In Sri Lanka the species is commonly referred to as "''Pimbura-පිඹුරා''" in [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]]. The subspecies ''Python molurus pimbura'' was thought to have stemmed from the alias given in Sri Lanka, however the pimbura, or Ceylonese Python is no longer considered a valid subspecies or locality and are known and registered as the same animal.

==Description==
The color pattern is whitish or yellowish with the blotched patterns varying from shades of tan to dark brown. This varies with terrain and habitat. Specimens from the hill forests of [[Western Ghats]] and [[Assam]] are darker, while those from the [[Deccan Plateau]] and East Coast are usually lighter.<ref name="Whitaker">Rhomulus Whitaker: „Common Indian Snakes – A Field Guide“; The Macmillan Company of India Limited, 1987; pp. 6-9; SBN 33390-198-3</ref>

In India, the nominate subspecies grows to {{convert|3|m|ft|sigfig=2}} on average <ref name=Nat.Hist.Soc.1912>{{Citation |first=F. |last=Wall |title=A popular treatise on the common Indian snakes – The Indian Python |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=21 |year=1912 |pages=447–476 |url=https://archive.org/details/populartreatiseo00wall }}.</ref><ref name="Whitaker"/> This value is supported by a 1990 study in [[Keoladeo National Park]], where the biggest 25% of the python population was {{convert|2.7|–|3.3|m|ft}} long. Only two specimen even measured nearly {{convert|3.6|m|ft|sigfig=3}}.<ref name=Nat.Hist.Soc.1990>{{Citation |first=S. |last=Bhupathy |title=Blotch structure in individual identification of the Indian Python (Python molurus molurus) and its possible usage in population estimation |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=87 |issue=3 |year=1990 |pages=399–404 }}.</ref> Because of confusion with the Burmese python, exaggerations and stretched skins in the past, the maximum length of this subspecies is hard to tell. The longest scientifically recorded specimen, which hailed from Pakistan, was {{convert|4.6|m|ft|sigfig=3}} in length and weighed {{convert|52|kg|lb|sigfig=3}}.<ref name=Minton/> In Pakistan, Indian Pythons commonly reach a length of {{convert|2.4|-|3|m|ft}}.<ref name=Minton>{{Citation |first=S. A. |last=Minton |title=A contribution to the herpetology of West Pakistan |journal=Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History |volume=134 |issue=2 |year=1966 |pages=117–118 |url=http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/1129 }}.</ref>

==Geographic range==
The nominate subspecies is found in [[India]], southern [[Nepal]], [[Pakistan]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Bhutan]], [[Bangladesh]] and probably in the north of [[Myanmar]].<ref name=Whitaker04>R. Whitaker, A. Captain: ''Snakes of India, The field guide''. Chennai, India: Draco Books 2004, ISBN 81-901873-0-9, p. 3, 12, 78-81.</ref>

==Habitat==
Occurs in a wide range of habitats, including grasslands, swamps, marshes, rocky foothills, woodlands, "open" jungle and river valleys. They depend on a permanent source of water.<ref name="Meh87">Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.</ref> Sometimes they can be found in abandoned mammal burrows, hollow trees, dense water reeds and mangrove thickets.<ref name="Whitaker"/>

==Behavior==
Lethargic and slow moving even in its native habitat, they exhibit timidity and rarely try to attack even when attacked. Locomotion is usually rectilinear, with the body moving in a straight line. They are excellent swimmers and are quite at home in water. They can be wholly submerged in water for many minutes if necessary, but usually prefer to remain near the bank.

==Feeding==
Like all snakes, Indian pythons are strict carnivores and feed on mammals, birds and reptiles indiscriminately, but seem to prefer mammals. Roused to activity on sighting prey, the snake will advance with a quivering tail and lunge with an open mouth. Live prey is constricted and killed. One or two coils are used to hold it in a tight grip. The prey, unable to breathe, succumbs and is subsequently swallowed head first. After a heavy meal, they are disinclined to move. If forced to, hard parts of the meal may tear through the body. Therefore, if disturbed, some specimens will disgorge their meal in order to escape from potential predators. After a heavy meal, an individual may fast for weeks, the longest recorded duration being 2 years. The python can swallow prey bigger than its diameter because the jaw bones are not connected. Moreover, prey cannot escape from its mouth because of the arrangement of the teeth (which are reverse saw-like).

==Reproduction==
[[Oviparous]], up to 100 eggs are laid by the animal, which are protected and incubated by the female.<ref name="Meh87"/> Towards this end, it has been shown that they are capable of raising their body temperature above the ambient level through muscular contractions.<ref name="Vic66">{{Citation |first=Victor H. |last=Hutchison |first2=Herndon G. |last2=Dowling |lastauthoramp=yes |first3=Allen |last3=Vinegar |year=1966 |title=Thermoregulation in a Brooding Female Indian Python, ''Python molurus bivittatus'' |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=151 |issue=3711 |pages=694–695 |doi=10.1126/science.151.3711.694 }}.</ref> The hatchlings are {{convert|45|-|60|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} in length and grow quickly.<ref name="Meh87"/> An artificial incubation method using climate-controlled environmental chambers was developed in India for successfully raising hatchlings from abandoned or un-attended eggs<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Balakrishnan|first1=Peroth|last2=Sajeev|first2=T.V|last3=Bindu|first3=T.N|title=Artificial incubation, hatching and release of the Indian Rock Python Python molurus (Linnaeus, 1758), in Nilambur, Kerala.|journal=Reptile Rap|date=2010|volume=10|pages=24–27|url=http://www.tropicalecology.in/pdf/Python%20molurus_incubation_Peroth%20Balakrishnan%20et%20al_Reptile%20Rap%202010.pdf}}</ref>

==Conservation status==
The Indian Python is classified as Lower Risk/[[Near Threatened]] on the [[World Conservation Union|IUCN]] [[IUCN Red List|Red List of Threatened Species]] (v2.3, 1996).<ref name="ICUN">{{Redlist species|no=19023|genus=Python|species=molurus|date= 12 July|year=2009}}</ref> This listing indicates that it may become threatened with extinction and is in need of frequent reassessment.<ref name="ICUN-23">{{Redlist CC1994|date=13 September|year=2007}}</ref>

==Taxonomy==
In the literature, one other subspecies may be encountered: ''P. m. pimbura'' [[Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala|Deraniyagala]], 1945, which is found in [[Sri Lanka]].

The [[Burmese python]] (''Python bivittatus'') was referred to as a subspecies of the Indian python until 2009, when it was elevated to full species status.<ref>{{cite journal
| last =Jacobs
| first =H.J.
|last2=Auliya|first2=M.|last3=Böhme|first3=W.
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title =On the taxonomy of the Burmese Python, ''Python molurus bivittatus'' KUHL, 1820, specifically on the Sulawesi population
| journal =Sauria
| volume =31
| issue =3
| pages =5–11
| publisher =
| location =
| year =2009
| url =
| jstor =
| issn =
| doi =
| id =
| mr =
| zbl =
| jfm =
| accessdate = }}</ref> The name ''Python molurus bivittatus'' is found in older literature.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:American Snake Charmer.jpg|Python molurus (colour mutations) [[Huntington Beach]], CA
File:Pitón de la India (Python molurus), Zoo de Ciudad Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, 2013-08-14, DD 08.JPG|''Python molurus'' with colour mutations
Image:Python molurus molurus 2.jpg|From [[San Diego zoo]]
Image:Indian_rock_python_pratik.JPG|From Dahod (Gujarat), India
Image:Labial Pits of P molorus.JPG|Labial Pits of P. molurus. Specimen at Ezhimala, Kerala, India.
Image:Indian rock python.jpg|Indian rock python with clearly visible body pattern.
Image:Indian python Python molurus.jpg|''P. m. molurus'' in [[Keoladeo National Park]], [[India]].
Image:Python molurus gab fbi.png|Head scalation.
Image:Rock_python_pratik.JPG|From Gujarat
Image:pratik_jain_rock_python.JPG|From Dahod(Gujarat)
Image:Indian python skeleton Ben W Bell April 2007.jpg|Skeleton
Image:Python_head.jpg|Head
Image:MNP Python at Moyer.jpg|P. m. molurus swallowing a [[Chital deer]] fawn, [[Mudumalai National Park]]
Image:Python molurus molurus-Bird Sanctuary-India.jpg|''P. m. molurus'', basking in front of its hole in [[Keoladeo National Park]], [[India]]
File:Head of Python molurus.JPG|Top view of the head of P. molurus
File:Clutch of Python molurus eggs.JPG|thumb|Clutch of Python molurus eggs
File:Lateral View of Head of Indian Rock Python ( P molurus) 01.JPG|Lateral View of Head of Indian Rock Python ( P molurus) 01
</gallery>

==In culture==
==In culture==
[[Kaa]], a large and elderly Indian python is featured in ''[[The Jungle Book]]''.
[[Kaa]], a large and elderly Indian python is featured in ''[[The Jungle Book]]''.

Revision as of 15:33, 14 December 2016

In culture

Kaa, a large and elderly Indian python is featured in The Jungle Book.

See also

References

Further reading

  • Whitaker R. (1978). Common Indian Snakes: A Field Guide. Macmillan India Limited.
  • Daniel, JC. The Book Of Indian Snakes and Reptiles. Bombay Natural History Society
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