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Species Atlas

PythonsSpecialist keepers

Olive python

Liasis olivaceus · also Pilbara olive python (subspecies barroni), bargumyji (Yindjibarndi, Pilbara form), palkunyji or parkunarra (Kurrama, Pilbara form)

Australia's second-longest snake has been photographed swallowing a freshwater crocodile whole.

Size
Commonly 3 to 4 m; the Pilbara form is reported up to about 6.5 m
Diet
Mammals up to the size of rock-wallabies and young euros, birds, fruit bats, lizards and occasionally freshwater crocodiles
Active
Nocturnal, often ambushing prey at waterholes; shelters by day in rock crevices and caves
Home
Rocky gorges, outcrops and caves near permanent water
Status
Least Concern (IUCN); Pilbara olive python (L. o. barroni) Vulnerable (EPBC)

Meet the Olive python

The olive python is a big, plain, smooth-scaled snake of the north's rocky country. It lives around gorges and waterholes, often lying in wait near the water's edge for animals coming to drink, and it is a strong swimmer.

Its diet shows just how powerful it is: rock-wallabies, young euros, ducks, pigeons, fruit bats, monitors and even small freshwater crocodiles. One big meal can keep it going for months.

John Edward Gray described the species in 1842 from Port Essington in the Top End. The Pilbara population, named Liasis olivaceus barroni after herpetologist Greg Barron, is isolated from the northern form by the Great Sandy Desert and is listed as Vulnerable nationally.

Because it is brown and large, it is often mistaken for a king brown (mulga) snake and killed, and Pilbara pythons are frequently hit on roads. Its smooth, pattern-free scales and the heat pits on its lips help tell it apart.

Where it lives

Across tropical northern Australia from Western Australia through the Northern Territory into north-west Queensland, with a separate subspecies in the Pilbara and north Gascoyne of WA.

Its place in Australian culture

First Nations connections

In the Pilbara, the Yindjibarndi name for the olive python is bargumyji, and Kurrama people call it palkunyji or parkunarra. It is an important spirit figure in explaining how rivers and waterholes were formed.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge belongs to its custodians. We only share what has been made public, and we encourage hearing stories from Traditional Owners on Country.

Australian story

Olive pythons made world headlines when people photographed them swallowing freshwater crocodiles near Mount Isa, Queensland, in 2014 and again in 2019; the 2014 meal reportedly took about five hours.

Fun facts

  1. It is usually ranked as Australia's second-longest snake after the scrub python.
  2. It has been recorded eating freshwater crocodiles.
  3. It has unusually many dorsal scale rows, giving it a very smooth, almost leathery look.
  4. Pilbara males travel several kilometres in the breeding season looking for females.
Specialist keepers

Can you keep one?

Kept by experienced keepers under some state licences, but its size and strong feeding response make it an advanced species needing a very large enclosure; check your state wildlife authority.

Planning a home for one? We hand-build custom backdrops, hides and ledges for Australian species.

Plan a habitat

For fans of the Olive python

A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia

Field ID

Helps tell olive pythons apart from king brown snakes and other look-alikes.

See options on Amazon AU

Questions people ask

How big do olive pythons get?

Most adults are around 3 to 4 m long, and the Pilbara subspecies has been reported up to about 6.5 m.

Is an olive python venomous?

No. It is a non-venomous constrictor, though it is often confused with the venomous king brown snake.

Can you keep an olive python as a pet in Australia?

They are kept by experienced keepers under some state licences, but their size makes them an advanced species; check your state wildlife authority.

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