The Woodland Park Zoo has a new resident and they're looking for community input in what to call the newest inhabitant. The new member is an eight-year-old, 100-pound male python snake that was introduced last week. At its introduction, staff of the zoo called for name suggestions and nearly 400 name suggestions were submitted in less than 48 hours.

Staff of the zoo have picked their five favorites and it's up to the community to make the final decision by casting a vote. The zoo staff’s top five names are:
 
Java – in honor of its roots in Southeast Asia and Seattle
Rimbo – “jungle” in Indonesian
Kaa – from “Jungle Book”
Pogi – “good looking” in Tagalog (Filipino)
Sundara – “beautiful” in Hindi
 
People can cast their vote until 3:00 p.m. tomorrow on the Zoo's Facebook page.
 
The reticulated python (Python reticulatus) is the longest snake in the world, with some rare specimens exceeding 30 feet in length and weighing 300 pounds, though its average size is 10 to 20 feet in length. As a constrictor, the python is not venomous but kills its prey by wrapping around it and suffocating it. The species’ range extends from Myanmar and India, across Southeast Asia and on many of the islands of the Philippines and Indonesia. They are at home on the ground, in caves or in trees and they have adapted to living in towns and cities where they hunt chickens, ducks, rats, and domestic cats, dogs and pigs.

For more information, visit www.zoo.org or call 206.548.2500.