Burmese python
Amazing fact
A Burmese python’s eyes are covered by clear scales instead of eyelids.
Smithsonian National Zoo
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
A Burmese python’s eyes are covered by clear scales instead of eyelids.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Burmese python
- Scientific name
- Python bivittatus
- Japanese name
- ビルマニシキヘビ
- Group
- Amphibians and reptiles
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Pythonidae
- Genus
- Python
After biting its prey, it quickly wraps its body around it so the prey cannot breathe.
The mother coils around her eggs, warms them by making her muscles quiver, and guards them until they hatch.
How the Burmese python lives
In the morning, they warm themselves in the sun. They eat birds, mammals, and reptiles. They climb trees while small, but adults live mainly on the ground.
Smithsonian National Zoo上野動物園Basic data
- Size
- Total length: 3–5 m, up to 7 m
- Weight
- 30–60 kg, 90 kg or more
- Diet
- Birds, mammals, and reptiles
- Range
- Southeast Asia
Where the Burmese python has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- ビルマニシキヘビ
- 简体中文
- 缅甸蟒
- 繁體中文
- 緬甸蟒
- 한국어
- 버마비단뱀
- Español
- Pitón de Birmania
- Français
- Python birman
- Deutsch
- Dunkler Tigerpython
- Português (Brasil)
- Píton-birmanesa
- Italiano
- Pitone birmano
- العربية
- أصلة بورمية
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Sanca bodo
- Tiếng Việt
- Python molurus bivittatus
- Русский
- Тёмный тигровый питон
- Türkçe
- Burma Pitonu
- ไทย
- งูหลาม
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 上野動物園 — ビルマニシキヘビChecked: 2026-11-03
- Smithsonian National Zoo — Burmese pythonChecked: 2026-11-05
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeWhen you meet the Burmese python, look for this
- Look for the large, dark blotches outlined in a lighter color.
Animals do different things from day to day, so you may not always see this.
Smithsonian National ZooEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Burmese python
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Pythonidae
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