Basking comfortably in
the warmth of his large cage in the Nature Center at World Bird Sanctuary, you
will find Kahn, the albino Burmese python. Kahn has been a resident of the sanctuary since about 1998,
when he flew to St. Louis from Rapid City, South Dakota in the coat pocket of
Walter C. Crawford Jr.
Kahn, World
Bird Sanctuary’s Albino Burmese Python (photo: Dawn Griffard)
Kahn is an albino Burmese
Python (Python bivittatus). The
term albino refers to the fact that this particular animal lacks pigment in his
skin. In animals, albinism is a
hereditary condition characterized by the absence of pigment in the eyes, skin,
hair, scales, feathers or cuticles.
It is a recessive gene (meaning the gene’s traits are rare to see) passed down by one of the parent animals.
Unfortunately, albino
animals do not fare well in the wild.
They fall easy prey to predators since they have much difficulty
camouflaging their bright body color.
Normal color Burmese Pythons may be pale tan, yellowish-brown or gray. On top of this base color are large
reddish blotches outlined in cream or gold. Kahn does have the Burmese Python blotches, but they are the
same yellow as the rest of his body and are outlined in white. His eyes are pale red instead of gold.
Burmese Pythons are one of
the largest snakes on Earth, averaging 16-23 feet in length and up to 200
pounds. Their girth can be as big
as a telephone pole. Female Burmese
Pythons are the larger of the two sexes and usually have a different coloration
and a smaller head relative to the body.
If you are considering a Burmese Python, remember that they can reach 23 feet long, weigh up to 200 lbs., and live as long as 30 years--are you ready for that responsibility?
Our Kahn weighs about 70
pounds and is 12 feet long. He was
the runt of his litter and was not doing well when he was hatched at Black
Hills Reptile Gardens, so Executive Director Walter
Crawford, offered to bring him back to WBS for some focused attention. He arrived at the sanctuary when he was
only 12 inches long.
The life span of these
snakes is 20-30 years. Since our
Kahn is only about 16 years old, he has a long life ahead of him!
Burmese pythons are
indigenous to southern China, Burma, Indochina, Thailand, and the Malay
Archipelago. These snakes generally live in rainforests near streams, although
they survive in a variety of habitats, such as grasslands, swamps, marshes, and
rocky foothills. Populations
are dependent upon a permanent source of water. Interestingly, Burmese pythons are excellent swimmers and
can stay underwater for up to 30 minutes before surfacing for air. They use their powerful body muscles to
flow gracefully in the water.
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Kahn in his
swimming pool (photo: JoHanna Burton)
They have very poor
eyesight, but can use the special chemical receptors on their tongue and the
super-sensitive heat-sensing pits around their mouth to find food. Pythons are constrictors, which means
they grab their prey with their teeth and coil their muscular bodies around it and squeeze until the prey is
suffocated. Because they don’t use
venom, they do not have fangs.
However, they do have many rows of backward curving teeth that allow
them to grab prey and not allow it to escape.
In the wild, Burmese
pythons will eat small mammals, reptiles and birds. They swallow their prey whole and spend the next several
days to weeks keeping warm enough to digest their meal. Like most snakes, Burmese pythons can
unhinge their jaws and have special ligaments that allow them to swallow an
animal four to five times as wide as their heads.
Our Kahn eats pre-killed
food items, which are much safer than live prey. Snakes that are born into and live in captivity generally
lose some of their wild inborn ability to catch and kill prey items quickly and
efficiently. Because of this, they
can often be bitten by that prey animal.
In turn, that bite may turn into a dangerous infected wound. The snake may also react to such an
attack by learning that the smell of that prey animal means “fear and injury”
instead of “food”; subsequently becoming a problem eater.
Closeup of
Kahn (photo: Dawn Trainor Griffard)
The plight of the Burmese
python in the wild is extreme.
Native populations are considered to be threatened and are listed on
CITES (Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species) Appendix
II. Although the snake is
widespread throughout their range, they are diminishing in numbers.
Hundreds of thousands of
these snakes are killed for their skins – which are made into accessory items
such as shoes, boots, belts and other items. Their blood and gall is used in folk medicine, and for
“snake wine” in Viet Nam. Young
snakes are captured and sold in the pet trade. Some snakes are commercially bred for these purposes, but
too many are still removed from the wild.
Conversely, non-native
populations of Burmese pythons are booming as an introduced species in southern
Florida. Populations begun by
overwhelmed and irresponsible pet owners, who thought it was a good idea to
release their pet snakes when they got too big to handle, have flourished in
the warm and humid Florida climate.
These unnatural introductions are having devastating
consequences on the Florida ecosystem.
Preying on many different native species and therefore competing with
the native natural predators, these Burmese Pythons are seriously impacting the
natural order of the ecological community. Over 2,000 Burmese pythons have been removed from Everglades
National Park. Although the
Burmese Python will likely never be eradicated
from south Florida, the National Park Service has been taking great strides to
manage the existing population.
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If you are
considering a snake as a pet please remember that this species grows too large
for most home environments (Photo: Gay Schroer)
Considering these grim
facts about our wild Burmese pythons, it seems they will never be seen in a
good, respectful light. Snakes are
often not seen as desirable, important creatures overall,
but they serve a great purpose to their native environments, as rodent control
for one example.
Our Kahn is an important
symbol for the exploited native wild animal populations that are disappearing
quickly on our planet, and as one who has unwittingly become a “nuisance
animal” as an introduced species by the irresponsible human hand.
Please consider showing
your support of this troubled species by adopting Kahn into your family
today. Your $50.00 adoption fee
will help feed, house and care for Kahn in the coming year. Your donation will make a great
difference. Kahn does not
yet have a family of his own, and it would be wonderful to have his nobility
recognized!
