Pythons: Pythonidae

Pythons are found in southern Asia; southeastern China and Southeast Asia; the Philippines; Papua, New Guinea, and Indonesia; and Australia. They also live in the central and southern region of Africa, which is known as Sub-Saharan Africa.

Depending on the species, pythons may live in thick forests, open forests, rainforests, rocky and scrubby areas high on hillsides, deserts, grasslands, swamps, or other freshwater areas. Some stay on land all their lives, while others spend much of their time climbing in trees. A few survive quite well in the desert, but others prefer the wetter areas, living in rainforests, or in some cases actually in a lake or other water area for up to six months a year.

People hunt pythons for their meat and skin and to make folk medicines. They are also popular in the pet trade, but most of the pet snakes now are born from other captive snakes rather than taken from the wild. Although some of the largest species are able to kill and eat humans, this hardly ever happens.