Boa constrictor | Description, Size, Subspecies, & Facts (2024)

FAQs

Boa constrictor | Description, Size, Subspecies, & Facts? ›

The snake's adult length is typically about 10 feet (3 metres), though individuals of more than 18 feet (5.5 metres) have been reported; Central American boas

After a large meal, a boa doesn't need to eat again for weeks. A boa constrictor grows throughout its whole life, which can be 20 to 30 years. An adult boa will generally weigh more than 100 pounds (45 kilograms) and grow to about 13 feet (4 meters) long. Boa constrictors tend to live alone.

Adults range in size from 2.4-3 m (8-10 ft.); some boas can exceed 3.6 m (12 ft.), but lengths of over 11 feet are extremely rare; newborn boas measure about 60 cm (24 in.)

Boa constrictor occidentalis (Argentine Boa)

These are some of the largest Boas, with females averaging around 10' (3m) long, and males smaller.

Boas are about 2 feet long when they are born and grow continually throughout their 25 to 30-year lifespan. The largest boa constrictor ever found measured 18 feet.

Depending on the size of the snake, boas may eat rodents, birds, lizards, frogs, and small to medium-sized mammals like opossums, monkeys, pigs, or deer. Some anacondas have been known to eat prey as large as a young tapir or even a caiman.

Some boas seem to genuinely appreciate handling, and others don't care for it. Respect the fact that the snake is an individual, and treat it according to its wishes. If, despite your best efforts, it prefers to be left alone, then let it be a beautiful display animal.

The Cropan's boa, native to Brazil's Atlantic Forest, hadn't been seen alive since its discovery in 1953. The rarest boa on Earth has been discovered in the rapidly shrinking Atlantic Forest outside São Paulo.

Reticulated python (32.8 feet)

Another South Asian native, the reticulated python (Malayopython reticulatus) — decorated with a pattern of repeating diamond shapes that give it its name — is widely recognized as the longest snake on Earth today.

A couple of specific boa constrictor predators include powerful avians such as the white-bellied sea eagle and the wedge-tailed eagle. Boa constrictors are also occasionally eaten by mammalian and fellow reptilian creatures -- think jaguars and crocodiles, for example.

Do male or female boa constrictors get bigger? ›

Clear sexual dimorphism is seen in the species, with females generally being larger in both length and girth than males. The usual size of mature female boas is between 7 and 10 ft (2.1 and 3.0 m) whereas males are between 6 and 8 ft (1.8 and 2.4 m).

Your pet snake may become comfortable around you while still being wary of strangers. However, snakes likely don't bond with people on the same level as a dog would. They probably won't feel sad when you're away or require playtime with you.

Boas can live up to 25 years in the wild and up to 30 years or more in captivity. The oldest common boa in captivity was recorded to have lived 40 years.

They can't move very fast, only about 1 mile per hour (1.6 kilometres per hour) on open ground. But since they don't have to chase their food, they don't need to travel quickly. Boa constrictors can swim; most don't spend significant time in water.

“They do this for 10, 15, up to 45 minutes,” said Elizabeth Brainerd, an evolutionary biologist at Brown University. “And that takes quite a bit of energy, so they have to be breathing.” Dr.

The common boa constrictor (Boa constrictor) is a large snake that can reach lengths of up to 4 m. Its teeth are sharp and recurved (Fig. 7.13). With four rows of teeth in the upper jaw and two in the lower, there are well over 100 teeth in the dentition.

Our study further debunks the myth that snakes are deaf. They can hear – just not as well as you or I. Snakes can only hear low frequencies, roughly below the 600Hz mark, whereas most of us can hear a much wider range. Snakes probably hear muffled versions of what we do.