a medium-sized black and orange snake, Bothrochilus boa, inhabiting rainforests in Papua New Guinea and neighboring islands. Adults are 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 meters) long. The black head of the snake is marked with a white spot behind the eye. The slender body has wide orange and black bands that extend to the tip of the tail. The colors are brightly contrasting in the juveniles and dim with age. In some individuals the orange gradually turns to brown. The ringed python is frequently found in areas that are closely associated with human activity, such as cleared and cultivated areas. It is active primarily at night, hunting mainly for small mammals, and sometimes entering farm buildings and homes in search of rats and mice. Mating takes place in cool weather. About a dozen eggs are laid at a time. Some females incubate their eggs by coiling around the clutch until they hatch; others leave their eggs hidden in forest litter. Hatchlings are 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 centimeters) long and mainly prey upon lizards. A member of the family Pythonidae, the ringed python was once grouped with the water pythons of the New Guinea area in the genus Liasis. (See also Pythons.) |