Ball python

Taxonomy

The specific name regius is a Latin adjective meaning "royal". In 1735 Albertus Seba described a specimen of Python regius, brought from the coast of Mozambique, as Serpens Phyticus; Africanus, prodigiofus, ab indigenis divino honore cullus. Based on Seba’s work, George Shaw proposed the scientific name Boa regia in 1802. The generic name Python was proposed by François Marie Daudin in 1803 for non-venomous flecked snakes. In 1844 André Marie Constant Duméril and Gabriel Bibron proposed the species’ current scientific name, Python regius.

Description

The ball python is black, or albino and dark brown with light brown blotches on the back and sides. Its white or cream belly is scattered with black markings. It is a stocky snake with a relatively small head and smooth scales. Females reach an average snout-to-vent length of 116.2 cm, a 44.3 mm long jaw, an 8.7 cm long tail and a maximum weight of 1.635 kg. Males are smaller with an average snout-to-vent length of 111.3 cm, a 43.6 mm long jaw, a 8.6 cm long tail and a maximum weight of 1.561 kg. Both sexes have pelvic spurs on both sides of the vent. During copulation, males use these spurs for gripping females. Males tend to have larger spurs, and sex is best determined by manual eversion of the male hemipenes or inserting a probe into the cloaca to check the presence of an inverted hemipenis.

Distribution and habitat

The ball python is native to west Sub Saharan Africa from Senegal through Cameroon to Sudan and Uganda. It prefers grasslands, savannas, and sparsely wooded areas.

Behavior and ecology

Ball pythons are typically nocturnal or crepuscular, meaning that they are active during dusk, dawn, and/or nighttime. This species is known for its defense strategy that involves coiling into a tight ball when threatened, with its head and neck tucked away in the middle. This defense behavior is typically employed in lieu of biting, which makes this species easy for humans to handle and has contributed to their popularity as a pet.

In the wild, ball pythons favor mammal burrows and other underground hiding places, where they also aestivate. Males tend to display more semi-arboreal behaviors, whilst females tend towards terrestrial behaviors.

Diet

The diet of the ball python in the wild consists mostly of small mammals and birds. Young ball pythons of less than 70 cm prey foremost on small birds. Ball pythons longer than 100 cm prey foremost on small mammals. Males prey more frequently on birds, and females more frequently on mammals.

Reproduction

Females are oviparous and lay three to 11 rather large, leathery eggs. The eggs hatch after 55 to 60 days. Young male pythons reach sexual maturity at 11–18 months, and females at 20–36 months. Age is only one factor in determining sexual maturity and the ability to breed; weight is the second factor. Males breed at 600 g or more, but in captivity are often not bred until they are 800 g, although in captivity, some males have been known to begin breeding at 300-400 g. Females breed in the wild at weights as low as 800 g though 1200 g or more in weight is most common; in captivity, breeders generally wait until they are no less than 1500 g. Parental care of the eggs ends once they hatch, and the female leaves the offspring to fend for themselves.

Parthenogenetic reproduction was demonstrated in a pet ball python through genetic comparison of a mother and her early-stage embryos.

Health and disease

Several infectious agents and husbandry-related conditions are known to affect ball pythons, especially in captive collections. Respiratory disease associated with novel reptile nidoviruses (sometimes called serpentoviruses) has been reported repeatedly in captive ball pythons and other python species; experimental infection studies and outbreak investigations provide strong evidence that these nidoviruses can cause proliferative interstitial pneumonia and fatal respiratory disease in ball pythons. Surveillance and diagnostic studies and reviews summarize nidoviruses as an important emerging pathogen in pythons. Clinical signs commonly reported include increased respiratory effort, open-mouth breathing, nasal/ocular discharge, and anorexia and weight loss. Mortality can be high in affected collections.

Other viral agents (such as ferlavirus), bacterial, and parasitic infections also contribute to disease in captive animals. Poor transport, overcrowding, and inadequate biosecurity in trade and ranching operations have been implicated in increased disease risk and mortality. Good husbandry, quarantine, diagnostic testing, and veterinary oversight reduce disease transmission in collections and trade.

Threats

The ball python is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List; it experiences a high level of exploitation and the population is believed to be in decline in most of West Africa.

In captivity

Ball pythons are the most popular pet snake and the second most popular pet reptile after the bearded dragon. According to the IUCN Red List, while captive bred animals are widely available in the pet trade, capture of wild specimens for sale continues to cause significant damage to wild populations.

Breeding

Captive ball pythons are often bred for specific patterns that do not occur in the wild, called "morphs." Breeders are continuously creating new designer morphs, and over 7,500 different morphs currently exist. Most morphs are considered solely cosmetic with no harm or benefit to the individual animal. However, the "spider" morph gene has been linked to neurological disease, typically involving symptoms such as head tremors and lack of coordination that are collectively referred to as "wobble syndrome." Due to the ethical concerns associated with intentionally breeding a color pattern linked to genetic disease, the International Herpetological Society banned the sale of spider morphs at their events beginning in 2018.

In culture

The ball python is particularly revered by the Igbo people in southeastern Nigeria, who consider it symbolic of the earth, being an animal that travels so close to the ground. Even Christian Igbos treat ball pythons with great care whenever they come across one in a village or on someone's property; they either let them roam or pick them up gently and return them to a forest or field away from houses. If one is accidentally killed, many communities on Igbo land still build a coffin for the snake's remains and give it a short funeral. In northwestern Ghana, there is a taboo towards pythons as people consider them a savior and cannot hurt or eat them. According to folklore, a python once helped them flee from their enemies by transforming into a log to allow them to cross a river.

References

References

1. D'Cruze, N.. (2022). "''Python regius''".
2. Wagler, Johann Georg. (1830). "Natürliches System der Amphibien : mit vorangehender Classification der Säugethiere und Vögel : ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden Zoologie". München ; Stuttgart ; Tübingen : In der J.G. Cotta'scchen Buchhandlung, 1830.
3. (1849). "Catalogue of the specimens of snakes in the collection of the British museum". The Trustees.
4. (1999). "Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference". Herpetologists' League.
5. Mehrtens, J. M.. (1987). "Living Snakes of the World in Color". Sterling Publishers.
6. (26 September 2023). "rēgius (Latin adjective)".
7. Seba, Albertus. (1734). "Locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesauri accurata descriptio, et iconibus artificiosissimis expressio, per universam physices historiam : Opus, cui, in hoc rerum genere, nullum par exstitit". Apud J. Wetstenium, & Gul. Smith, & Janssonio-Waesbergios.
8. (1802). "General zoology, or Systematic natural history. Volume III, Part II". G. Kearsley.
9. (1803). "Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, des reptiles". De l'Imprimerie de F. Dufart.
10. Duméril, André Marie Constant. (1834). "Erpétologie générale, ou, Histoire naturelle complète des reptiles". Roret.
11. Barker, D. G.. (2006). "Ball Pythons: The History, Natural History, Care and Breeding". VPI Library.
12. (2005). "Sex Differences in Body Size and Ectoparasite Load in the Ball Python, ''Python regius''". Journal of Herpetology.
13. Rizzo, J. M.. (2014). "Captive care and husbandry of ball pythons (''Python regius'')". Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery.
14. McCurley, K.. (2005). "The Complete Ball Python: A Comprehensive Guide to Care, Breeding and Genetic Mutations". ECO & Serpent's Tale Natural History Books.
15. (1998). "Sexual size dimorphism and natural history traits are correlated with intersexual dietary divergence in royal pythons (''Python regius'') from the rainforests of southeastern Nigeria". Italian Journal of Zoology.
16. (2023). "Demonstration of parthenogenetic reproduction in a pet Ball Python (''Python regius'') through analysis of early-stage embryos". Genes (Basel).
17. (2018). "Respiratory disease in ball pythons (''Python regius'') experimentally infected with ball python nidovirus". Virology.
18. (2014). "Identification of a novel nidovirus in an outbreak of fatal respiratory disease in ball pythons (''Python regius'')". Virol. J..
19. (2021). "Nidoviruses in Reptiles: A Review". Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
20. (2020). "Investigations into the presence of nidoviruses in pythons". Virology Journal.
21. (2014). "Captive care and husbandry of ball pythons (''Python regius'')". Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery.
22. (2020). "Searching for snakes: ball python hunting in southern Togo, West Africa". Nature Conservation.
23. (2021). "Using Google Trends to Determine Current, Past, and Future Trends in the Reptile Pet Trade". Animals.
24. Bulinski, S. C.. (2016). "A Crash Course in Ball Python/Reptile Genetics".
25. Giggs, R.. (2024). "Skin in the Game".
26. "Morph List – World of Ball Pythons".
27. Yurdakul E.. (2020). "Ball Python Morphs".
28. Rose. (2014). "Neurologic dysfunction in a ball python (''Python regius'') color morph, and implications for welfare". Journal of Exotic Pet Medicine.
29. (2017). "Breeders Meetings – New Policy – June 2017". International Herpetological Society.
30. (1931). "Serpent worship in Africa". Fieldiana Anthropology.
31. (2019). "Cultural transformation and the trials of the sacred python in text and context". Creative Artist: A Journal of Theatre and Media Studies.
32. (1988). "Interpretation, Invention, and Re-Presentation in the Worship of Mami Wata". Journal of Folklore Research.
33. (2015). "Exploring the African traditional belief systems in natural resource conservation and management in Ghana". Journal of Pan African Studies.