This lovely Amethystine Python was seen on a Nightwalk in December 2007. It was about 2m long. Amethystine Pythons get their name because of the wonderful shimmering that you can see off their scales in torchlight or sunlight.

If you look cloesly at the picture you can see this shimmering from the neck down.

This image also allows you to see the heat sensing pits on the nose in front of the eyes, that are characteristic of these pythons. The pits allow the snake to detect the heat of warm blooded prey up to ten metres away!

At the moment the photo was taken, the snake has poked its tongue out. This allows the python to 'taste' the air, something we can only imagine. It has been variously described as a combination of smell and taste all in one.

Amethestine Pythons eat mammals, birds, reptiles, even other snakes! They are not venemous, but have many backward facing teeth to help hold on when they lunge at their prey. They then wrap around and aspyxiate the victim before swallowing it. They grow commonly to 4 metres long, and occassionally to as long as 8.6m. Large examples can eat dogs, pigs, and other large animals.