Blood Pythons (part of the group known as “short tailed pythons” are medium to large sized snakes that most often inhabit Thailand, Sumatra and other small islands in Southeast Asia.  The blood python is found in tropical swamps, palm plantations and forests.

An Adult blood python typically grows to about 4-5 feet in length and females tend to be on the smaller side. There has been recordings of some blood pythons growing close to 100 inches in length. Blood python are heavy-bodied snakes with a thick, muscular body and variable coloration / markings. What’s most interesting about this species is its huge girth and an adult specimen can easily weigh up to or more than twenty pounds. They tend to be active at sunrise and sunset.

The short-tailed python group consists of three attractive and closely related snake species. Beside the blood pythons there is the Borneo short-tailed python and the Sumatran short-tailed python. These pythons mainly eat small mammals, rats and birds. These powerful snakes, strike suddenly from concealment, capturing their prey and killing it by constriction.

In captivity Blood Pythons should be kept at temperature between 82 and 85 degrees. A reptile heat mat is recommended rather than other sources of heat. A large (clean) water source should be made available for drinking and soaking all the time.