Geography
The reticulated python native to coastal Southeast Asia, has the largest range of any python species—from the Nicobar Islands, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore, east through Indonesia and the Indo-Australian Archipelago (Sumatra, the Mentawai Islands, the Natuna Islands, Borneo, Sulawesi, Java, Lombok, Sumbawa, Sumba, Flores, Timor, Maluku, Tanimbar Islands) and the Philippines (Basilan, Bohol, Cebu, Leyte, Luzon, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros, Palawan, Panay, Polillo, Samar, Tawi-Tawi).
They can also be found in Madagascar and Australia.
Habitat
The reticulated python is seldom seen in the wild. It is heavily dependent on water and can often be found near small rivers, swamps or ponds in steamy, tropical rainforests. The reticulated python can also be found in a variety of other habitats, like open woodlands, savannah and rocky areas but require a tropical environment with a temperature range of 80 to 92 degrees Fahrenheit.
The reticulated python is an excellent swimmer. It has been reported far out at sea, and because of its long water range it has colonized many small islands through Southeast Asia. A reticulated python is at home on the ground, in the caves or trees, but has also adapted to live in towns and cities. There, they hunt chickens, ducks, rats, domestic cats, dogs and pigs. A large reticulated python—remember, they can get up to 33 feet long—can eat monkeys, wild boar, deer and yes, even people. This is rare, but it can happen.
In the early twentieth century, the reticulated python has been reported in busy parts of Bangkok, sometimes eating domestic animals.