Antaresia childreni

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Antaresia childreni

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Pythonidae
Genus: Antaresia
Species: A. childreni
Binomial name
Antaresia childreni
(Gray, 1842)
Synonyms
  • Liasis Childreni - Gray, 1842
  • Nardoa Gilbertii - Gray, 1842
  • Liasis childreni - Boulenger, 1893
  • Liasis childreni childreni - Mitchell, 1955
  • Bothrochilus childreni - Cogger, Cameron & Cogger, 1983
  • Antaresia gilbertii - Wells & Wellington, 1984
  • Morelia childreni - Underwood & Stimson, 1990
  • Liasis childreni - Cogger, 1992
  • A[ntaresia]. childreni - Kluge, 1993[1]
Common names: Children's python.[2]

Antaresia childreni is a non-venomous python species found in Australia. Gray named it in honour of his mentor, John George Children, who was a curator of the zoological collection at the British Museum around that time. No subspecies are currently recognized.[3]

Contents

[edit] Description

A. childreni, young male.
A. childreni, young male.

Adults grow to an average length of about 90 cm, with a maximum of 1.1 m. The crown scales are enlarged while those on the body are small and smooth, with a rainbow sheen that can be seen when exposed to direct sunlight.

[edit] Geographic range

Found in Australia in the extreme north of Western Australia, the northern third of Northern Territory, and northeastern Queensland. Also on the islands of the Torres Strait. The type locality given is "?" Listed as "N.W. Australia" in the catalogue of the British Museum of Natural History and as unknown in Stimson (1969).[1]

It occurs specifically in the region spanning along the coast between the Kimberleys in Western Australia to Mt. Isa in northwestern Queensland.

[edit] Feeding

The diet consists of reptiles, birds and small mammals, particularly microbats. The snakes catch the bats by dangling from stalactites in caves, which they commonly inhabit, and snatch them out of the air as they fly past.

[edit] Reproduction

Oviparous, with up to 25 eggs per clutch. Female brood their eggs through a seven week incubation period by coiling around them and occasionally shivering to keep them warm, which also affords the eggs some protection from predators. Juveniles are heavily blotched, but gradually become reddish brown or brown as they mature.

[edit] Captivity

Often kept as a pet due to its good nature and less demanding requirements. The lifespan of captive specimens has been known to exceed 30 years. Juvenile are fed on pinky mice (baby, hairless mice), while larger individuals can be fed on adult mice or small rats.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
  2. ^ Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
  3. ^ Antaresia childreni (TSN 634764). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 19 September 2007.

[edit] External links