Savu Pythons (Liasis Mackloti Savuensis)

[Boadicea]

Thought I'd post some pics of these beauties. They come from a tiny island called Sawu near Indonesia.They are lovely snakes and no trouble to keep. I got them as babies and they are now starting to show their adult colouration. Anyone else on the forum have any?
They still have a bit of an attitude

I'm coming to get you!!!

The one is a lot lighter than the other - terracotta with black speckling

From what I have read the females get darker than the males. So I'm assuming this one is the male. He has a couple of odd whitish marks on his face but I have checked and they look smooth and healthy.


and this is the female

Their eyes are an unusual white colour. Against the darker background of their skin it can be quite striking.
You can see the similarity they have with Mackott's pythons


However they do not get nearly as big as Macklott's.

[Mitton]

Very nice, just love the white eyes.
I don't think too many people has these.

[Bushviper]

For years they were considered to be a sub-species of the Macklots pythons. They are very rare on the island where they occur and the favourite place to collect them was a long wall which was made of coral stones. The wild caught ones had the usual parasites and once they started producing these in captivity the problems went away. They are snappy (like macklots) but will calm down as adults. The babies sometimes require lizards to get them going.

The fact that they are less sought after because of their disposition has possibly saved the species in the wild. The collecting in the wild and export seems to have tapered off but whether this is because they are harder to find or because less people want them I am not sure.

They are a very nice small python and fill the gap between the Anteresia group and the Macklots, White lipped and Carpet grouping.

I have only ever been offered wild caught rubbish, so Boadicea if you breed these please bear me in mind.

[Boadicea]

@ BV thanks for that detailed background. It really paints a picture of just how small the island is when even the snakes' favourite hangout is limited to one coral wall. I am relieved that the collecting has tapered off. A few of the websites I checked said the snakes were threatened due to collecting for the pet trade.
I always have this dilemma with the rarer species. Am I supporting the 'evil' pet trade in buying them or am I doing a little bit to preserve them when there is the possibility that they could be extinct in a few years?
I will keep you in mind if they breed BV. So far no sign of eggies from them or the Macklott's though. The latter are quite big already so I guess I will have to prepare some rat au vin, light some candles, play soft music and see if they get the hint.

[fredsmith]

Wow Boadicea, very interesting looking snakes you have. The white in the eyes makes them look way unique... Way cool!

You say you've had them from babies... how long have you had them? & How big a snake will these become?

[Boadicea]

Thanks fredsmith. I have had them for about 18 months now I think. They do not get very big about metre or so.

[fredsmith]

They really are wicked cool. Thanks for sharing, I hope we see more of these guys as they grow.

[uncutdiamonds]

For years they were considered to be a sub-species of the Macklots pythons. They are very rare on the island where they occur and the favourite place to collect them was a long wall which was made of coral stones. The wild caught ones had the usual parasites and once they started producing these in captivity the problems went away. They are snappy (like macklots) but will calm down as adults. The babies sometimes require lizards to get them going.
...
They are a very nice small python and fill the gap between the Anteresia group and the Macklots, White lipped and Carpet grouping.

I have only ever been offered wild caught rubbish, so Boadicea if you breed these please bear me in mind.

If one is offered Macklots (or Savu) pythons, how does one distinguish the two from each other?

[Bushviper]

If one is offered Macklots (or Savu) pythons, how does one distinguish the two from each other?

Savus have silver eyes and are more expensive. The babies are a solid orange brown colour while the Macklots look similar to the parents.

[uncutdiamonds]

...Savus have silver eyes and are more expensive. The babies are a solid orange brown colour while the Macklots look similar to the parents.

The ones that I've been offered were in the R600 range. Anthracite dark/grey Black and had silver eyes. At least one was very snappy against anything that approached the vivarium, but I think that trait is with both. I asked the seller to make sure about subspecies.

[Westley Price]

R600? No way it's Savus, or I highly doubt it.

They command much higher prices than that.

One of my favourite pythons species.

Ask the seller for pics and post them. It'll be easy to tell the difference.

[uncutdiamonds]

R600? No way it's Savus, or I highly doubt it.
They command much higher prices than that.
One of my favourite pythons species.
Ask the seller for pics and post them. It'll be easy to tell the difference.

I'll see what I can get in terms of pictures. I like macklots, too. And either way I think it's good, a savu would just be a bonus in terms of having to get a larger enclosure on some stage for the 2xmackloti it will be earlier and bigger.
The other thing I thought of would be the possibility of hybrids.