Turns out, though, that ball pythons are in the same family as the boa constrictor. Both types coil around their prey and suffocate them before eating them. Contact Lisa Fernandez at 408-920-5002.

Ball python Ball pythons are some of the most common pet snakes in existence. They are large, non-poisonous constrictors reaching up to 5 feet long.

Foreword / Richard Shine -- Introduction -- The biology of boas and pythons: a retrospective look to the future / Robert W. Henderson and Robert Powell -- Ecology, natural history, and evolution -- ...

CBS 2 reported that this find comes just one week after a ball python was found under a woman's car at Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, about 30 miles away from where the boa constrictor was spotted.

A ball python found in the barracks and a red tailed boa found in the parking lot at Camp Lejeune prompted a warning against exotic pets.