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Children's Python
Antaresia childreni
Also called Banded rock python, Small-blotched python, Large-blotched python, Stimson's python (pattern form), Gefleckter Python (German)
From Northern Australia: the far north of Western Australia, the top third of the Northern Territory, northern Queensland and islands of the Torres Strait12
At a glance the quick version
Looks how to spot one
Smooth scales; slender python build
A small, slim python with a reddish-brown back marked by darker blotches. The blotches are bold in young snakes and soften with age, so many adults look almost plain reddish-brown. The lips are pale yellow with brown flecks and the belly is an even yellowish cream.1
Personality what they are like
Usually quiet and easygoing, which is a big part of why it is often picked as a first python. It is mostly active after dark and shows a strong interest in food at feeding time.1
Daily activity how busy a day looks
Nocturnal and partly arboreal: it moves around on the ground but also likes to climb, so it uses height as well as floor space.12
Grooming and care the hands-on bits
A hardy snake that copes with a fairly broad humidity range (roughly 20 to 80 percent is reported), which makes day-to-day care forgiving for newer keepers.1
Home where they are happiest
Comes from varied northern Australian country, from savanna and shrubland to rocky areas and wetlands, and often climbs. A secure enclosure with hiding spots on the ground plus sturdy branches for climbing suits its habits.12
Food basics what goes in the bowl
Carnivore. Wild snakes take reptiles, birds and small mammals, including bats caught near caves. In captivity hatchlings start on newborn mice, moving up to adult mice or small rats as they grow.1
Company who they like around
A solitary snake best housed alone; captive males are known to fight one another over females.1
The story where it all began
John Edward Gray described the species in 1842 as Liasis childreni, naming it after his mentor John George Children of the British Museum. It now sits in the genus Antaresia, named after the star Antares. Work published in 2020 concluded that Stimson's python and Children's python are colour forms of a single variable species.12
Fun facts for the dinner table
- 1
Its genus name, Antaresia, comes from Antares, the bright star in the tail of the Scorpius constellation.2
- 2
Females wrap around their eggs for about seven weeks and shiver their muscles to keep the clutch warm.1
- 3
Young snakes are boldly blotched, and the pattern usually fades into a smoother reddish-brown as they grow up.1
- 4
The species honours John George Children, a British Museum curator and Fellow of the Royal Society.2
Recognised by the official bits
- The Reptile Database
- Valid species Antaresia childreni (Gray, 1842), originally described as Liasis childreni; Stimson's python forms are treated as part of a genetic gradient within this species2
The care rhythm Furry Diary remembers it for you
A typical home-care rhythm for a Children's Python. It is our own starting plan, not a vet's advice, and you can change every line in the app.
- Fresh waterevery day
- Temperature checkCheck the warm and cool endsevery day
- Humidity checkevery 2 days
- Spot cleanevery 2 days
- FeedingHow often depends on species, age and sizevaries
- Shed checkNote each shed in the diary; a complete shed is a good signvaries
- Weigh inevery month
- Full cleanevery month
- Vet check-upFind a vet who sees exotic petsevery year
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Where this comes from
Every breed page shows where each fact comes from. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are pet people, not a science magazine. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
- Antaresia childreni - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.orgused for range, size, lifespan, colour, diet, captivity, history, facts
- Antaresia childreni - The Reptile Database reptile-database.reptarium.czused for taxonomy, names, etymology, partly arboreal habit
Checked 2026-09-30. Text is written in our own words from these sources.