Alternative Name
Scientific Name: Liasis fuscus
Basic Info
The Australian Brown Water Python is mostly brown with a yellowish underbelly. The scales are not a dull brown, but rather are an iridescent color, which shimmers and gives the Brown Water Python the appearance of actually having a great many colors. The iridescence provides good camouflage since water also shimmers.
Health
Mating occurs during February and March or in June to September, and eggs are produced rather than live young. Two to three months later, a clutch of 6 to 23 eggs is produced.
Habitat
Lives in bushy areas near water, which it uses quite frequently to hide in or to escape from danger
Behavior
The Brown Water Python or Australian Brown Water Python is an extremely beautiful snake.
In the wild, the Brown Water Python lives in bushy areas near water, which it uses quite frequently to hide in or to escape from danger. Contrary to its name, these Pythons may also be found on land. Brown Water Pythons are nocturnal, and most often found in Northern Australia or Southern New Guinea. It has often been noted that the Australian Brown Water Python is rather aggressive and therefore it is recommended that this type of Python not be kept as a pet.
Origin
Australia
History
In Northern Australia, Southern New Guinea, and the surrounding islands, the Australian Brown Water Python lives in watercourses or billabongs, which are close to forests or heavily wooded areas. These Brown Water Pythons will also live in swamps. They are well known in Aborigine lore as an important deity. Known in this myth as the Rainbow Serpent because of its iridescent scales, it is said that this huge creature actually used its brightly shimmering body to create the river valleys of the areas in which the real-life Brown Water Python inhabits. Currently, they are bred in the Glasgow Zoopark and are flourishing in captivity.
Common Foods
Australian Brown Water Pythons eat small mammals like bandicoots or rats, though birds, especially water birds, are often taken.