Timor python

Timor python
Malayopython timoriensis in a zoo
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Pythonidae
Genus: Malayopython
Species:
M. timoriensis
Binomial name
Malayopython timoriensis
(W. Peters, 1876)
Synonyms
  • Liasis amethystinus var. timoriensis
    W. Peters, 1876
  • Liasis Petersii
    Hubrecht, 1879
  • Python timorensis
    — Boulenger, 1893
  • Python timoriensis
    — F. Werner, 1899
  • Python timoriensis
    — Stimson, 1969
  • Australiasis timoriensis
    — Wells & Wellington, 1984
  • Morelia timoriensis
    — Welch, 1988
  • P [ython]. timoriensis
    — Kluge, 1993
  • Broghammerus timoriensis
    — Rawlings et al., 2008

The Timor python (Malayopython timoriensis) is a Malayopython species native to Southeast Asia. It is a dwarf species, and no subspecies are recognized as being valid. It is a nonvenomous constrictor and not considered dangerous to humans.

Taxonomy

Liasis amethystinus var. timoriensis was the scientific name proposed by Wilhelm Peters in 1876.

Authors of a phylogenetic study suggested that the Timor python together with the reticulated python (Malayopython reticulatus) should be moved to a distinct genus Broghammerus. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses have supported the separation of the Timor and reticulated pythons from genus Python. However, Broghammerus is considered an invalid name by most authorities, so that this clade was formally renamed to Malayopython in 2014, a decision that was followed by many authors.

Description

The Timor python is a fairly long, over 2.1 m (7 ft), but relatively thin python. It has a series of heat-sensing pits between its nostrils and mouth used to find warm-blooded prey in total darkness. It is cold-blooded.

Distribution

The Timor python is distributed on the Lesser Sunda Islands of Flores, Lomblen and Timor.

Behavior and ecology

The Timor python is partly arboreal.

Captive Timor pythons have been known to accept birds and small mammals.

The Timor python is oviparous.

References

  1. ↑ Lilley, R.; Rusli, N.; Stubbs, A.; Arida, E. (2021). "Malayopython timoriensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021 e.T104842394A104854030. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-2.RLTS.T104842394A104854030.en. Retrieved 23 June 2026.
  2. 1 2 McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
  3. 1 2 Rawlings LH, Rabosky DL, Donnellan SC, Hutchinson MN (2008). "Python phylogenetics: inference from morphology and mitochondrial DNA". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 93: 603-619.
  4. ↑ "Python timoriensis ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 21 September 2007.
  5. ↑ Peters W (1876). "Über die von S. M. S. Gazelle mitgebrachten Amphibien ". Monatsberichte der Königlich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin 1876: 528–535 + Plate. (Liasis amethystinus var. timoriensis, new variety, p. 533 + Plate, figures 3, 3a, 3b, 3c). (in German).
  6. ↑ Reynolds, R.G.; Niemiller, M.L.; Revell, L.J. (2014). "Toward a tree-of-life for the boas and pythons: multilocus species-level phylogeny with unprecedented taxon sampling". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 71: 201–213. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.11.011. PMID 24315866.
  7. ↑ Kaiser, H.; Crother, B.I.; Kelly, C.M.R.; Luiselli, L.; O'Shea, M.; Ota, H.; Passos, P.; Schleip, W.; Wüster, W. (2013). "Best Practices: In the 21st Century, Taxonomic Decisions in Herpetology are Acceptable Only When Supported by a Body of Evidence and Published via Peer-Review" (PDF). Herpetological Review. 44 (1): 8–23.
  8. ↑ Barker, D.G.; Barker, T.M.; Davis, M.A.; Schuett, G.W. (2015). "A review of the systematics and taxonomy of Pythonidae: an ancient serpent lineage". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 175: 1–19. doi:10.1111/zoj.12267.
  9. ↑ Booth, W.; Schuett, G.W. (2016). "The emerging phylogenetic pattern of parthenogenesis in snakes". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 118 (2): 172–186. doi:10.1111/bij.12744.
  10. 1 2 Mehrtens JM (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
  11. 1 2 "Malayopython timoriensis ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading