Puerto Rican Boa

Puerto Rican Boa

 Description:

The Puerto Rican Boa or "culebr" is the largest native species of snake, and one of only three Boidae on the island. It typically grows to a length of 6 or 7 feet, although 12 foot long specimens have been reported. The Boa's color varies from tan to dark brown with 70 to 80 crossbars or spots which are outlined in very dark brown. 

Puerto Rican Boa

 Reproduction:

Pregnant females give birth to about 23-26 live young boas. Young boas have never been kept in captivity because their feeding patterns have never been studied.

Puerto Rican Boa

 Habitat:

The Puerto Rican Boa may be found on the ground or in trees. In some areas of the forest the Boa hangs from branches, vines and rock ledges at the mouths of caves and when bats brush by them or collide with them they capture and eat them.

 Feeding Behavior:

The boa feeds by seizing the prey in its jaws, wrapping several coils around the victim, and then constricting until the prey has suffocated. The prey is then swallowed head first. The feeding habits of the very young are unknown.

Since the karst region in which the Puerto Rican boa lives usually has many caves, the boa has the opportunity to feed on bats. It was previously unknown how the boa managed to capture the bats in flight. Observations revealed that boas hang at the opening of the cave, waiting until bats fly out of it. Then they grab a bat with their jaws before killing it via constriction.

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RAINFOREST SNAKES...

As rainforests are so rich in biodiversity with the presence of favourable conditions such as warmth and water, it is no surprise that snakes in general are found in their greatest numbers in the tropical areas of the Earth. (1)

GREEN SNAKE

We’ve even encountered a mention of the fact that “…most large amphibians and reptiles are today exclusively tropical in distribution”. (2)

As a significant part of the wildlife of tropical forests around the world, snakes have an impact on other animals both as predators and prey. (3)

Out of around 2,700 species of snakes in the world, only 1/5 th are venomous; the rest are not. (4)

Without trying to put an exact figure on it, we would assume that rainforests house a similar proportion of venomous and non-venomous snakes.

Learn more about some fascinating Snake Facts here.

Snakes use most types of habitats in a rainforest – most of them live on and under the ground but some of them also inhabit trees and water sources. (5)

Rainforest snakes are carnivores. They employ several ways of attacking other animals. Non-venomous snakes can either pin their prey to the ground or “constrict” them which means that they wrap their own bodies around them in a coil and squeeze them until the victim dies. Venomous snakes normally inject venom into their prey. (6)

Boas (such as anacondas, boa constrictors and pythons) are probably some of the most popular rainforest snakes.

Amazon Snakes

The Amazon forest – the largest tropical rainforest of the world – is home to a great variety of snakes.

As some authors mention: “… snakes appear to be the single most diverse reptile group in the Amazon Basin, where more than 175 snake species have been described”.
The floodplains house a large number of all the reptile species found in the Amazon Basin, and though many species of snakes inhabiting the Amazonian floodplains are aquatic the majority of them are most likely arboreal. Many Amazonian snakes, such as boas, pit vipers and some colubrids, move to live in the forest’s trees during floods. 

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