Young snakes leave the nest soon after hatching, and their first shed usually occurs within seven to 10 days. During their first year of life, they can double or triple in length. Although large Indian pythons spend most of their time on the ground, they are skillful at climbing and moving through trees, and even swimming in water. Their dramatic skin pigmentation of intricate earth tone patterns enables pythons to blend in with their natural setting. A hungry python will lie in ambush, patiently waiting for suitable prey to pass.
All pythons have heat-sensitive pits located on their upper lips that detect the body heat of prey.
The prey, which can be as large as a small deer, is swallowed whole. After its meal, a python can survive for weeks, even months, without another meal. Most snakes do not attend to their eggs after they are laid. In this respect, female Indian pythons are truly devoted mothers. Laying her eggs in a pile, the female python coils herself around the eggs and guards them from nest-robbing predators throughout a two to three month incubation period.