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Animal profile

Indian Rock Python

Python molurus

ReptiliaGrassland, scrub, marsh, riverine forest and rocky foothillsNear Threatened

Field profile

The Indian rock python is a large, pale-brown constrictor of the subcontinent, marked with dark blotches and a lance-shaped mark on the crown. Females brood their eggs by coiling around them. It is legally protected in India and has been successfully reintroduced at several sites.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2024-12-10

Indian Rock Python

A brooding python shivers to warm her eggs

Female Indian pythons coil around their clutch and contract their muscles in rapid twitches, raising body temperature several degrees above the surrounding air. It is one of the few clear cases of heat production by a snake.

Read with evidence →

Indian Rock Python | Daily Animal Facts