SNAKES
SNAKE – ROCK PYTHON
The Rock Python is a large, African snake. It lives in the tropical grasslands near water and the edges of forests.
At 20 to 30 feet in length, it is the largest snake in Africa and the third largest snake in the world. They usually weigh 150 to 250 pounds. Like all snakes, the rock python moves by slithering over the ground.
Pythons kill by squeezing their prey and swallowing it whole. Normally they eat small animals, but if they are very hungry they will eat large animals. They feed on rodents, lizards, pigs and gazelles.
The rock python lies between 30 to 100 eggs. The females protect the eggs until they hatch. They guard the babies for two weeks after hatching to keep them from predators. When the snake is small, predators, such as monitor lizards, crocodiles, birds of prey, cats, and pigs hunt the python. It’s funny that when this snake is all grown up, it hunts these animals for food. It has few predators as an adult, except for crocodiles and man.
