rounded snout, black tongue, and pale blueish grey oral mucosa. One way to distinguish the sex of a Halmahera python is by noticing the snout: females have a somewhat shorter snout, which leads to the appearance of having a wider head. Simalia tracyae is also marked by two or three pairs of enlarged parietal scales on either side of its head. The Halmahera python is marked by a distinct scale pattern; there have never been any patternless specimens observed. There are anywhere from 48-56 dark brown or black bands on the body, with the stripes reaching their darkest point on the snake's back and lighter towards the sides. The stripes are 4-11 dorsal scales in length, and are separated by 3-7 dorsal scale lengths. In addition to the dorsal stripes, a well-defined postocular stripe and one to two thick black stripes around the neck are often present. The Halmahera python is unusual because of the pattern's consistency across the species, with very little variation. This snake is also unique in that the adult snake has the same pattern as it did in adolescence; there is little to no change in design as the Halmahera python develops. Coloration The Halmahera python changes color over a short period of time; however, scientists are unable to determine what circumstances cause the color change. At the darker end of the color spectrum, Simalia tracyae could be medium brown, orangish-brown, or russet. These colors could change to be a greenish-straw, grey-tan, yellowish-tan, or tan on the lighter end of the spectrum. Though the base color of the snake changes, the pattern of thick dorsal stripes remains the same. The stripes could be dark brown, charcoal-brown, brownish black, charcoal, or black at the dark end of the color continuum and become a medium greenish brown or medium reddish brown as the python shifts to the lighter end of the continuum. However, if a stripe is pure black it will remain black despite any other color changes. Though no newly hatched Halmahera pythons have been observed, Barker and Harvey of the 2000 python study “would predict that hatchlings are very dark reddish-brown in color.” Behavior Though scrub pythons in general are found above the ground in canopies, locals of Halmahera have most often encountered Simalia tracyae crawling on the ground. However, this species certainly has the ability to travel through the trees as it is often found