Diamond Jungle Carpet Python

By John Battaglia

John Battaglia

Care Sheet for the Carpet Python (Morelia spilotes)

The carpet pythons are a diverse group of snakes from the Morelia genus that are native to a wide variety of biotopes in Australia and New Guinea. They are called carpet pythons because they exhibit a dazzling array of patterns and colors that mimic the beautiful woven carpets found in the Middle East. Collectively they are considered a hardy, medium size python with fairly easy captive care requirements. The more common carpet pythons available in the pet trade include jungle carpet pythons, diamond pythons, Irian Jaya pythons, and coastal carpet pythons. Selective breeding of carpet pythons has recently exploded with new “morphs” such as granite, caramel, jaguar and zebra carpet pythons.

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JOHN BATTAGLIA

Jungle carpet python.

Availability

Carpet pythons are widely available in the USA and nearly all are captive bred. Almost every reptile show will have some carpet pythons for sale, and reptile classified sites on the internet have sections devoted solely for the sale of carpet pythons. Reptile specialty stores will usually have carpet pythons for sale and the larger chain pet stores sometimes have them. Range of price is as low as $75 to up to several thousand dollars for particular morphs (such as an albino zebra carpet python). Most carpet pythons are in the $200 to $300 range.

Size

Carpet pythons come out of the egg pencil sized, and once mature they range from 5 feet to 9 feet in length. On the smaller end of the size range are Irian Jaya pythons (mature about 5 feet) and upper end are adult coastal carpet pythons which are closer to 9 feet in length. Usually males and females are about the same size, although females are usually larger in diamond and coastal carpet pythons.