The ball python is highly regarded in the indigenous religion of the Igbo people native to southeastern Nigeria. It is considered a symbol for the earth. A python is treated with great care if one may happen to wander into a village or onto someone's property. It is allowed to roam freely, or is very gently picked up and placed out in a forest or field away from any homes. If one is accidentally killed, many communities in Igboland will build a coffin for the snake's remains and give it a short funeral.
The ball python has a camouflaged design made up of browns and tans. The top of their head is characteristically a dark brown, and has yellowish stripes on each side from the nostrils to the back of the head. The underside of the snake is ivory white. They have a highly sensitive forked tongue which they use to smell and to sense heat. The female ball python is larger than the male, and can reach a length of up to 6 feet, although 4 feet is more common. Their muscular bodies are 4-6 inches in diameter.
They are found in Western to Central Africa just north of the equator, in open forests, as well as drier savannahs and grasslands. This python spends most of its time on or under the ground in confiscated burrows, although it can climb rocks.
The ball python’s diet is comprised primarily of small mammals, such as African soft-furred rats, shrews and mice.
They are generally well-mannered and will seldom bite. This python is known for its defense strategy, which involves coiling into a tight ball when threatened, with its head and neck tucked away in the middle. In this state, it can literally be rolled around.
The ball python is not endangered, and few conservation efforts are in place to safeguard their numbers.
There is a large market for ball pythons in the pet trade, and although some are taken from the wild, most are bred in captivity as pets - a practice which has been in place for many years.
Ball Pythons generally live 10 years in the wild, and often 20-30 years in captivity (the record is 47 years).