Calabaria reinhardtii

[Nightflight99]

Tonight's picture contribution is a little somethin' different: Calabaria reinhardtii, the Calabar python (sometimes called the Calabar ground python or African burrowing python) is a prime example of a species that is really cool and fascinating, yet is rarely kept in the trade. It was named after the Danish herpetologist Johannes Theodor Reinhardt, and occurs in West and Central Africa. Even though their common name implies that this is a python, it is not a true python--that is, a member of the taxonomic family Pythonidae. Instead, it has recently been found to be closely related to the Madagascan boids, including the genera Acrantophis (Malagasy ground boas and Dumeril's boas) and Sanzinia (Malagasy tree boas). Calabar pythons tend to ball up when they feel threatened, at which point the tail tends to mimic the head. They're somewhat shy, but hardy animals that do well in a burrowing setup with a deep substrate.

The left specimen is a male, the right one is a female.