Boa Constrictor

Overview

Boa constrictors are large, heavy-bodied snakes distributed from Mexico through Central and South America to Caribbean island populations. As ambush predators they use constriction to subdue prey - squeezing until the prey's circulatory system stops, rather than suffocating it as once thought. They are viviparous (live-bearing), with females giving birth to litters of up to 60 live young.

Quick Facts

History

Boa constrictors have been listed on CITES Appendix II since February 1977, so international trade runs on export permits rather than a ban. They make up about 6 percent of Appendix II snake exports, well behind the ball python's 80 percent. The trade has done measurable damage in places: the boas of the Cayos Cochinos islands off Honduras, prized for pink coloring and a smaller, calmer build, were collected heavily between 1979 and 1993, and a five-day herpetological survey in the early 1990s found none at all, leading researchers to suspect the island population had been wiped out. Captive breeding now supplies most of the pet trade, and that case is the clearest argument for why it should.

Fun Facts