Clown Royal Pythons for sale in the UK

The Clown morph alters both the pattern and the colour of a royal python (ball python). A bright, busy pattern is found on the head that no normal shows. A wide dark stripe runs along the spine while the side pattern is pared right back.

Appearance

A thick, dark brown dorsal stripe running along the whole body and tail is the giveaway. On a golden yellow background, the markings of a normal alien-head shrink into loose blotches or slight banding. The amount of side pattern that stays varies between animals. Some show almost nothing while others are busy with small spots. The head is bright and busy. Markings appear across the crown, beneath the eyes, and above the lips. The eye stripe of a normal is usually missing. A small dark mark under the eye is found on many Clowns. This teardrop gave the gene its name, though not every animal has it. The belly is usually clean, yellow down the centre with faded spotting at the edges.

Clowns change as they age. The dorsal stripe is dark in hatchlings but fades to lighter shades of brown as the snake matures. Adults are more muted and paler than they were as juveniles.

Genetics

Clown is recessive, so there is no super form. Het Clown, 50% Het Clown, 66% Het Clown and Pos Het Clown animals all look like normals, and a genetic test for Clown is available. Clown shares a complex with Cryptic and the two are allelic: an animal with one copy of each is sold as a Crypton. A 2025 study in Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research associated Clown with a missense mutation in the MC1R gene. Named combos include Killer Clown (Super Pastel Clown), Batman (Leopard Spotnose Clown) and Grail (Lavender Albino Clown). Dave and Tracy Barker of Vida Preciosa International (VPI) first produced it in 1999.