GRAND OLE
CARPET SNAKE
A Bilambil couple recently requested the
relocation of this (pictured) magnificent Carpet Python. They
had just moved to the area with their new-born baby, and the
old farm house they were renting was so dilapidated it could
not ensure the safety of their baby. After a Vet check for
a suspected respiratory problem, the 3.17m, 8.8 kg specimen
was given the all clear and relocated.
The couple accepted the presence of many
other snakes in the vicinity of their house, however the sheer
size of this python posed a threat they felt they could not
ignore. Hopefully this grand ole python will be able to establish
itself in new surroundings and go on to live out the rest
of it's life undisturbed. |
Article
by Graeme and Deborah Lloyd
CARPET PYTHONS
These large reptiles gain their name from
their beautiful, and distinctive patterning. Comprising 3
sub-species, and ranging over much of Australia, they average
2 ms in length, but have been reported up to 4 ms. Largely
nocturnal in warmer weather, they can also be active by day
when cooler. Carpets are arboreal, terrestrial, and rock-dwelling,
and in some areas they shelter in burrows made by other animals,
hollow tree limbs, rock crevices, and house roofs.
Their diet includes a variety of terrestrial
vertebrates (mammals, birds and lizards), which are killed
by constriction, and then swallowed whole.
Females usually lay 20 - 40 eggs in a sheltered
site (such as a hollow log) in late spring or early summer,
coiling around their eggs for up to 60 days until they hatch.
If the temperature of the eggs drops too low, the female will
"shiver" to generate heat. A clutch of eggs can
weigh up to 25 per cent of the females total body weight.
Young carpets are independent as soon as they hatch, dispersing
from their nest in search of food, and to establish their
own home range. Radio tracking indicates that pythons have
a preferred home range.
Many houses on the east coast have a resident
"carpet" in the roof. Many people are completely
unaware of this, and those that are, often "adopt"
and name their quiet lodger. These snakes provide a "rodent
cleaning service" totally free of charge.
These magnificent non-venomous snakes are
for the most part quite harmless, but will bite if provoked.
Appreciate these animals, but please do not pick them up.
Like all pythons, they are incredibly strong, and may coil
around your arm leaving you thinking - "OK, so now how
do I get this snake off my arm?"
AND OF COURSE -
NEVER PUT ANY PYTHON AROUND YOUR NECK |
