Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Hello and welcome to our second episode about constrictors. Today I'll talk about Boas.
If we talk about Boas, we have to talk about the Boa Constrictor.
Here I have a Boa Constrictor without a determined subspecies. It's no Imperator, nor a Constrictor Constrictor.
Boas have been breed for decades. Back then nobody paid attention if it was an Imperator, Constrictor or Longicauda. The people just breed them.
The result were some very nice Boas. But you have no chance of determining their subspecies.
Therefore their exact place of origin is also unknown.
Some call them wood and meadow Boas, or even *** Boas - which is quite mean.
These Boas can become up to 2,5m long.
It also depends on their genes. If they are more Imperator, then they are smaller. They are longer if they have more Constrictor Constrictor genes.
2,5m are the average length an adult has.
A temperature of 30°C during the day and 24-25°C at night, are the climatic conditions they need and enjoy.
They are quite well behaved animals. Normally they don't bite. If your animals bites, then this is probably an exception to the rule.
They are easy to breed and grateful animals for a terrarium.
Here I've got two different Imperators.
To my right, I have a Boa Constrictor Imperator from Costa Rica.
To my left, a Boa Constrictor Imperator from Honduras.
Boas have an enormous area of circulation, from North America, Mexico, Central America, down to South America.
Congruently there are many sub species.
The nice thing about the Imperators is that they don't grow too large, they can become about 2m.
As you can see, there are also many different colors.
This drawing with the spots, on the animal from Costa Rica, is rather an exception.
Apart from that the brown tint is typical for animals from Costa Rica.
The Imperator from Honduras also has a typical fawn brown tint.
You can see the red belly, which is also typical for animals from Honduras.
As said before, both become no longer than 2 meters, therefor they are quite pleasant to keep.
These are the smallest Boa species, in my left hand a Boa Constrictor Imperator from El Salvador.
Fully grown, these snakes are between 1,5m and 1,7m long - they grow really slow.
They are lovely animals - they have this phosphorescent rainbow shimmer.
In regards to their maximal length, they are quite easy to keep.
The small snake to my right is a Mexico Boa.
This is also a Boa Constrictor Imperator. We assume it's a Tarahumara Dwarf Boa, but it's line isn't documented thoroughly.
But in regard to its appearance and size I do believe it is a Tarahumara.
This snakes parents are about 1,4m long. Some animals from this line are also 1,7m long, but they are rather old and large.
You can expect these Tarahumaras or Mexico Dwarf Boas to become 1,5m long on average.
Therefore, this is the smallest Boa Species.
The size these snakes are born with is also interesting - this snake is about 3 months old.
When they are born, they are bigger than a Corn Snake.
If you compare it to the other Constrictor species, they are relatively small.
Now I want to talk about the Boa Constrictor Constrictors.
This is a red-tailed Boa from Surinam. They have a really interesting and attractive skin color.
Their magenta colored tails respectively their nice red tint.
As indicated by the name, these animals are from Surinam. You can also find them in French Guiana.
Their area of circulation overlaps a bit. You can argue about whether or not the Surinam and Guiana populations are discrete.
Let's talk about the size. Constrictor Constrictors become larger than Imperators.
Especially the Surinams belong to the largest Constrictor species.
They grow to a size of 3m. In exceptional cases, even up to 3,5m.
I still remember the snake I once saw at a dealer in the US. It was captured in the wild and its head was about the size of my hand.
When these snakes are 3-3,5m long, they have enormous heads. They are really impressive animals!
They are not as well tempered compared to the Imperators we just talked about. If you raised them from an early age they are pleasant.
The Imperators from Central America are easier to care for.
Constrictor Constrictors are sensitive towards stress. You shouldn't take them into your Hand too often or have too much foot traffic.
You also have to pay attention when you feed them. If you overdo the feeding they throw up the food.
These animals should only be kept by people that already have a certain level of expertise in keeping Boas.
Genetically, this Boa is a close relative of the Boa Constrictor.
Geographically, you can't talk about a close relative. It's a Boa from southern Madagascar, a Boa Dumerili.
You can find two Boa species on Madagascar. The Dumerili and the Madagascariensis.
The Dumerili is the smaller snake; therefor it is better suited for terrarium owners.
Fully grown, they reach a length of about 2m. Similar to the Constrictor, maybe even a bit smaller.
The climatical conditions are identical. 30°C at day and at night you can go down to 23°C.
They have a well-behaved character, even as babies. They are easy-care animals.
You have to pay attention that the babies are well-feed or even start to eat properly. It can be quite some argy-bargy until they start eating.
If they start eating, they are easy to care for animals.
If you want to buy such an animal, you have to be able to trust the breeder saying that the animal has a normal eating behavior.
And that you don't buy a recently hatched baby that has eating problems.
As said before, they are easy to care for and easy to breed. But you have to follow the regulations under WA, appendix 1. You need CITES with photographical documentation.
Here I have a Rainbow Boa, an Epicrates Cenchria Cenchria a baby and a fully grown animal.
Rainbow Boas belong to the species of 'Schlankboas' [Slim Boas]. The animal in my left hand is about 2m long. That is the length they can reach.
Compared to the Constrictor you can see that they are slimmer, despite their length.
Their place of origin is the northern part of South America - Brasil, Guyana, Suriname and Peru.
They solely are earth dwellers; they live in humid foliage and humid earth.
That is an important fact to consider, when you own these Boas. They don't like the high temperature that other Boas need.
You should have a rather low temperature on the ground.
And you most not heat the terrarium from underneath. Heating the terrarium with A heating mat from below is the biggest mistake you can make!
They are really sensitive! This would lead to metabolic disorders and they would have one molt after another.
If you keep red-tailed Rainbow Boas, only heat the terrarium from above. You can also keep them in a well heated room.
Pay attention that the floor is humid. You can put in moist moss or moist substrate.
So the snakes can lie in the humid earth and don't dry out.
In other respects they are really beautiful animals - as you can see.
They have their name partly due to their phosphorescent rainbow shimmer.
Normally they are well-behaved animals. The babies sometimes bite.
This one is trying to squeeze my hand, but I don't believe that she is doing it on purpose. She's only trying to hang on to me.
They are really great fosterlings and a very popular snake among terrarium owners.
Last but not least, I want to talk about Anacondas.
The name alone gives some people the shivers, thanks to the motion picture Anaconda.
There are two species, a green and a yellow one.
This is a Yellow Anaconda, an Eunectes Noteus. The yellow species stays smaller compared to the green species.
Fully grown it can only reach a length between 2,5m and 3m.
They need the same climatical conditions as Boa Constrictors. About 30°C at day and 24-25°C at night.
These snakes are also from South America.
Let's talk about their handling - as you might see on my fingers - Anacondas are reekers
If you want to tame an Anaconda, which is possible.
You can tame these animals, but they have to be used to be taken into your hands beginning at an early stage.
You have to accept that they will bite you from time to time. The good news is, that they have short teeth. Even if they bite you, it doesn't hurt that much.
But it does need time, until you have tamed them.
Once you tamed them, they will, as a rule, stay pleasant-natured.
The worst is yet to come - in this case a green Anaconda, an Eunectes Murinus.
Green Anacondas are the largest Constrictors in the world, even the largest snakes in general.
A Reticulated Python is a bit longer, but if you account for the weight, the Green Anaconda is the largest snake.
Their habitat is closely tied with water. They live in the side arms of the River Amazon - in Bolivia and Brasil. As I recall, Peru also belongs to their place of origin.
As said before, they live in the delta distributary of the Amazonas River. They live in the marshes there.
They are mostly submerged, with only the head sticking out. Or rather only having their eyes and the tip of their nose sticks out.
They have adapted to these conditions very well.
They can lie in the water and wait for prey.
If you have sufficient space, a large cellar or utility room, then you can keep them species-appropriate.
They are easy to breed. What you really need is a lot of space!
Talking about their handling - just as the yellow Anacondas, they are no sweeties!
After birth, they try to bite anything that comes near them.
If you take them out regularly, then the animals get used it and you can tame them.
That was part 2 of our series about Constrictors, this time we talked about Boas.
Here too, we couldn't show you all the snakes we keep in our terrariums. Some of you might have missed the Corallus. Corallus Enydris and Corallus Canius were missing.
And there are also other really nice Boas and some beautiful Epicrates.
Of course there are many Constrictor sub species.
For more on that topic I can recommend this book! 'Reinrassige Boa' [Purebred Boa] from Hermann Stöckl, which was published by us.
Your welcome to place your order. With it, you'll get to know every Boa sub species there is.
I hope you enjoyed the show!
Until next time! Check my Balls! And check the Boas!
Hello and welcome to episode ....
Stefan: They are all quite well behaved animals. As you can see She is curious... Director: Someone just switched out the lights!
If Anita shows up later, can you please remind me to tell her, that she should switch the lights to ‘always on’.
What a bunch of drivel. I really talked myself to sleep.
And now we'll talk about ... Let me start again without saying 'and now'.
That's one fierce look, she'll probably bite my in an instant.
And here we have some Rainbow Boas ... let's do that part again.
Of course something was missing ... that sounds like crap - something was missing.
You don't have to save that shot.