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The image of a Burmese python measuring more than 3 meters long with the tail of a reticulated python in its mouth shows that it has completed a sumptuous meal.
A reticulated python was swallowed whole by a Burmese python over 3 meters long (Photo: Iflscience).
Burmese Python (Python bivittatus) and reticulated python (Malayopython reticulatus) are found in Bangladesh, both in the wild and on farms.
This puts them in fierce competition with each other, as they share a common food source of lizards, birds, and small mammals. As highly skilled hunters, a clash between them could have disastrous consequences.
Such a sighting was spotted at Akiz Wildlife Farm in Bandarban, southeastern Bangladesh, where a Burmese python measuring about 3.04 metres (10 feet) was found devouring a reticulated python, the length of which is unknown.
According to witnesses, the Burmese python took the initiative from the start, approaching and wrapping itself tightly around its prey. In turn, the reticulated python also tried to defend itself by tightening its grip on its opponent.
Reticulated pythons can grow up to 6 metres long in the wild (Photo: Getty).
However, due to the difference in size, it was unable to gain an advantage over its larger opponent and was quickly subdued.
After about 2 hours of fighting and wrestling on the ground, the world’s longest python was completely inside the predator’s belly. This was recorded as the first predatory behavior of the Burmese python towards the reticulated python.
That’s because reticulated pythons are typically larger and longer than Burmese pythons of the same age. They are also the longest python species in the world, reaching up to 6 meters in length.
A rare case was recorded in the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in 1912, when people encountered a reticulated python measuring 9.75 meters long.