The reticulated python is the longest snake in the world. Large reticulated pythons are about 5 to 7 meters long. As of November 2026, zoo pages give 10 meters as the longest on record. As of November 2026, the Guinness World Records longest snake in captivity is Medusa, a captive reticulated python in Kansas City, Missouri. She measured 7.67 meters (25 ft 2 in) on 12 October 2011.

A study looked at more than 1,000 wild reticulated pythons from southern Sumatra. The snakes measured from 1.5 to over 6 meters in length and from 1 to 75 kilograms in mass. The largest males were about 5 meters long and 20 kilograms, and the largest females were about 7 meters long and 75 kilograms.

Reticulated pythons live from western Bangladesh to southeastern Vietnam, and on islands to the south. They live in tropical forests, often near ponds, rivers and streams. A python needs an area near a body of water. It needs the water for protection and for hunting success.

In Singapore, reticulated pythons move around the city through drainpipes and swim in canals. There they do not tend to grow as large as elsewhere. They usually eat small mammals such as rats.

Young reticulated pythons spend a lot of time off the ground in trees and bushes. Large adults stay mostly on the ground. Pythons are good swimmers and often spend time in water, where a large snake moves more easily and can hide while it waits for food.

A reticulated python hunts by waiting in ambush until food comes close. It has many sharp teeth that curve backwards. It has no venom.

Small reticulated pythons eat mostly rodents. As they grow they take larger animals such as pigs and deer. A python swallows its food whole. A snake has a very low metabolic rate, so it can go a long time between meals. In a zoo, large reticulated pythons are fed about 10 pounds of rabbits every 3 to 4 weeks.

The bigger a female python is, the more eggs she lays. Male pythons begin to breed at about 7 to 9 feet long. Females begin at about 11 feet long. A clutch usually holds about 25 to 50 eggs. The eggs hatch after about 80 to 90 days, and a mother python guards her eggs and defends them against predators.

Adult reticulated pythons are so big that they have few natural predators. As of September 2026, reticulated pythons have been commercially harvested in Malaysia and Indonesia for more than a century. Hundreds of thousands are taken from the wild each year for meat, skins and medicine body parts. As of November 2026, the IUCN Red List lists the reticulated python as Least Concern.

A reticulated python must shed its skin as it grows. It keeps growing throughout its life. As of November 2026, the longest known lifespan of a reticulated python in captivity is 32 years. The longest in the wild is 23 years.

Words to know

• ambush: wait to catch
• captive: kept by people
• clutch: group of eggs
• metabolic: body energy use
• predators: animals that hunt