Aspidites melanocephalus

Excepting the arid zones, the Black-headed python (Aspidites melanocephalus) has colonized for about one third of the continent the northern part of Australia. It has archaic features compared to other Pythonidae like the absence of the thermoreceptors to localize through the heat the preys in the night hunting. It mainly eats reptilians, snakes included, but also mammals and birds. The conformation of the head allows it to dig to shelter against the cold in a den or to catch preys. Although of terrestrial habits it can climb trees and, in case, swim. The females lay 8-18 eggs that they protect for about 2 months, rolled over until hatching. The lifespan ranges from 20 to 30 years © G. Mazza