Husbandry of the Jungle Carpet Python in Captivity

Morelia spilota cheynei…. the Jungle carpet python. Saying that common name usually brings to mind gorgeous black and yellow snakes, an iconic look as just about any in the hobby. I decided the other day to write my first care related blog, and no other species would be as appropriate for me to discuss. It is one of the species I have worked with the longest, and what the majority of people know me for, even before my moluccan scrub pythons and other assorted animals. They are comparatively, a small to mid sized python species located in a relatively small territory in northeastern Australia. Jungles have been my favorite species for as long as I can remember at this point, and I have found them extremely easy to care for and reproduce in captivity

Size and caging

As I mentioned in the introduction, jungles are usually considered a small to mid sized python. More and more keepers today are realizing that the majority of jungles really should not exceed 7ft. In fact when asked what to expect in an adult, I usually say a healthy range for an adult jungle carpet python at 5 years of age and older, is approximately 4.5ft to about 6ft(males being the smaller end and females larger). Just like anything else, there will be those that end up smaller or larger than that range, but what is important here is to understand what the healthy size of your animal actually is given it’s genetic potential. There are some of us who have animals around 7ish foot and are healthy, but these are typically older animals, over a decade old and just happened to reach their potential on a genetic bell curve. Same goes for the other end of the spectrum. It is perfectly possible to see small males. But a healthy average range, would be 4.5–6ft in length, with good muscle tone and lean, not over weight.

Caging for jungles can be just about anything you can think of that is used today in the hobby from rack systems, to glass tanks, to cages of various levels of elaborateness. As long as your providing a proper amount of space, temperature gradients, and what the animal needs inside that enclosure, your good to go. I typically raise young animals in rack systems until they get some size on them and are ready to go into 4ft wide x 2ft deep x 18in high cages.

Environment(temperatures and more)

I keep my jungles fairly simply. No matter the “box” they are in, the habitat is basically the same, just on a larger or smaller scale. Temperature wise I start with a basking area of 88–89*f. On the cool end of the cage or enclosure, it’s usually close to room temperature which will vary slightly depending on the season. During warmer months my room will get as high as approximately 79*f, while during the winter it will drop as cool as 67*f. The snakes then have the option to thermoregulate their body temperature utilizing their cage space to do so. Humidity is something that I usually receive disagreement on with how I give advice on, but experience and understanding has proven that it’s not something that needs attention the majority of the time. Most people have a perfect level in their homes at all times anyway, but some of us do have very dry periods. My house most of the year sits around a perfect 50% relative humidity, but during the winter can drop into the 20s. I have found as many others have, that even when low humidity conditions are happening, simply making sure your snakes are well hydrated makes all the difference, and you will see very few shedding problems. Most don’t even bother misting. Please understand that low humidity, is far less of a problem than over misting(which usually doesn’t actually solve anything) and having things be to wet.

Enclosure interior structure

The “furniture” of my animals enclosure is pretty simple. They always have water bowls of course, which I try to fill with fresh water as much as possible. They also all have hides. In my adult females enclosures, the hides will actually double as a nest box for egg laying and maternal incubation. The hatchling rack hide I use often double as a place for babies to perch. Jungles are true semi arboreal snakes and I’ve always found about a 50/50 split between individual behavior as well as behavior from most frequent perchers. What I mean by this is that I see an even split between animals that prefer perching a lot, and animals that don’t really care about it as much. Either way you will see the animals do both, perching or spending time hiding/terrestrial. I use both traditional perch style and shelves in cages and both work well. My one piece of advice would be make sure to provide your jungles a situation where they can drape their bodies over a couple of close perches if possible. Unlike true arboreal species like green tree pythons, they prefer to have a bit more stability when perched, as they aren’t built the same. The bedding or substrate for your enclosures can be what ever works for you and your preference. I tend to use newspaper in my rack systems, and then cages get a brand of Cyprus mulch I’ve used for 20 years and really like. Anything will work fine as long as you don’t keep it wet.

Typical behavior

Everybody knows the myth of carpet aggression, but the truth is, this is really just misunderstanding. Starting with hatchlings, they are often very DEFENSIVE and will strike out when they feel threatened. In nature, at that size they are an easy prey item, so their natural instinct is to defend themselves. This defensiveness usually will last between a year or two until they gain confidence in themselves and don’t feel threatened any more. This entire time period, I work the snake with a snake hook, as this will be important in the next phase. The second part of this myth is from adults and how they are usually “cage aggressive”. This is actually once again misunderstood, and is usually the animals food response. Carpets typically have very good feed responses so that can be a bit intimidating. But this is where the snake hook comes in. All you do is lightly touch the snake with it, and then pick up one of it’s coils with the hook and bring it to your hand, and then remove the snake as you normally would. Typically with these techniques you will find the majority of carpets turn into fantastic trustworthy snakes. Like anything else, there is a bell curve, and will be a small percentage of individuals who are overly defensive and in fact aggressive. But for the most part even with minimal handling, this is not the case.

I’d like to briefly touch on feeding in this section as well. I don’t go by any set feed schedule with my animals, regardless if they are a baby or the oldest animal in the room. I typically feed babies more often, and adults far less often. If I were to try and put some kind of numbers on it, I feed hatchlings no more often then once a week, but usually spread it out a touch more and will be random with it. As far as adult animals(sexual maturity and older) I feed my males once a month, and feed my females anywhere from every 2–4 weeks depending on breeding cycle, and time of year. Remember you want a healthy and lean snake. Obesity is pretty prevalent in carpet pythons so please keep this in mind.

Breeding

Sometimes I feel bad when I’m asked about breeding my jungles. It’s hard to really tell folks what I do, when in reality I do very little anymore. The first thing I do, is start with very young animals. If you begin with younger animals, they grow up in your room, and are in sync with any and all seasonal changes and such. This is more important than people realize. I do not weigh my carpets ever, as I make sure they are good and sexually mature before attempting breeding. Males aren’t as much of a concern but typically between 1.5–2 years old I will attempt males. Females on the other hand I like to have at least 4 years of age before any breeding attempts. This is because sexual maturity is often replaced by weight for folks trying to rush animals to breed. The wait ensures healthier animals, healthier clutches, and better longevity. For reference, I am located in NY state, so weather gets very cold during our winter here. I will offer last meals around Halloween at the end of October. I no longer manipulate anything in the room, or with their heating and lighting elements. There are some windows in our reptile room so they will get a photo period. Our room goes through a natural seasonal temperature change of a few degrees or so which is the only type of cycle they receive. I typically will start pairing my snakes in mid to late November and will do so until I see an ovulation, or it gets to be later in February. I watch for courting and breeding behavior and will usually observe the majority in December-January. Sometimes I will play with food cycles and give the female a small meal or two in January if I think it would benefit her reproductive cycle, but normally I don’t have to do this(side note: make sure your animals have a good healthy weight and body composition coming into winter, so they can go all season with no food if necessary). Before to long, I usually will observe an ovulation, followed by a pre-lay shed, and then finally eggs! Make sure to keep your female well hydrated during this time period. Once the female finally lays eggs, you can either artificially or maternally incubate the eggs. These days I choose maternal as it’s an amazing experience to observe.(if you scroll through my blogs, I did one entirely on my experiences with this method). After about 60 days on average, you should see those tiny heads poking out of the eggs! Success! Once all the babies are out and set up, wait a few weeks and for a first shed before starting feeding trials. One thing I want to mention about feeding hatchlings, is be very patient. Most will eventually take food and once they are 2–3 meals in, they should take off like champs. If you have one or two stubborn individuals for a couple of months or so, try different tricks. I have found live to be a good go to for the picky. But there are plenty of other methods.

In conclusion

There you have it my friends, a run down on my care and breeding of this incredible species. I remember many years ago buying my first pair online. I almost didn’t pull the trigger until a friend did a little reverse psychology on me, and convinced me to pull that trigger as soon as I got home. I still have the female from that pair to this day, and unfortunately lost the male just last year due to cancer. Since that day, I have been completely and utterly passionate about jungles. Carpet pythons have been a huge part of my life, and the common bond that has made me many friends over the years. If you allow yourself to get past the myths of carpet pythons and take a chance on one, I can all but guarantee you to will quickly list them near the top of your favorites. There is nothing more fun, than watching an earth toned baby, transform into a black and yellow trophy animal. Add to this that most jungles turn into very handleable tame adults, and you have quite the conversation starter. Bring one to a reptile show, and see how many people will just have to learn more about them. This iconic species from Australia, is not one to be missed!