White Marble Children’s Python.
All images by Dave Evans.
C
hildren’s Pythons (Antaresia childreni) are
relatively small snakes, with most adults
reaching about 70-80cm and a maximum size of
around one metre. They are found through the
northern parts of Western Australia, the Northern
Territory and Queensland (along the western side of
Cape York Peninsula). Their distribution borders
that of the Stimson’s Python (A. stimsoni) in western
and central regions, and the Spotted Python (A.
maculosa) in the east.
When they hatch, Children’s Pythons have a
creamy-brown base colour with areas of darker
brown patterning running the entire length of their
bodies. As they grow the base colour will generally
darken, making the markings less obvious; some
adults have an almost patternless appearance.
Hatchlings can sometimes be a bit tricky to get
feeding, but once they will take rodents they gener-
ally don’t look back and as adults will normally
accept mice, rats or quail whenever food is offered.
They are hardy snakes once established and will
thrive in captivity when provided with the correct
conditions.
There are several mutations that have popped up in
Children’s Pythons over the years, but for this article
I will be focussing on the Marble (or Marbled) morph
that, in my opinion, is one of the most visually
compelling mutations to have appeared in the
reptile hobby in Australia.