Paraguayan Peninsula (Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, Venezuela)ī.Mexico (Tarahumara Mountains, Sonoran, Tamaulipas, Cancun).It has been documented in the following countries: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela. This species can be found west of the South American Andes, throughout Central America and in parts of Mexico. Certain localities top out at 3-5’ due to a locale-specific dwarf gene. However they are reasonably hardy, don’t get sick easily, have a ready feeding response, and possess a slender build between 5-7’ (1.5-2.1m) long on average. I disagree, simply because they are larger than most “easy” snakes, making them slightly more difficult to handle and much more difficult to house, requiring an enclosure that is both tall and wide.

Some sources argue that it is one of the best beginner snakes a reptile enthusiast can have. The Central American Boa tends to be the most docile of the Boa genus, and is the most common species available in the pet trade. (You can refer to this CABI datasheet for details.) Widespread acceptance is still pending, but several publications have acknowledged the new name since the original research was published in 2009. imperator used to be classified as a subspecies of Boa constrictor until DNA sequencing identified imperator as a distinct genetic lineage with 5-7% sequence divergence from constrictor. constrictor.īoa imperator (Central American Boa/Common Boa)ī. melanogaster was recently reclassified as B. Specimens have been documented in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guyana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. constrictor is native to South America east of the Andes Mountains, particularly in the Amazon rainforest. constrictor average between 7-10’ (2.1-3.0m) - especially when allowed to grow slowly (read: naturally) rather than power-fed.ī. They have the potential to get up to 12’ (3.7m) long, but this is rare most B. Some localities also have a brown or dark brown tail instead of the namesake red, and they experience a color change as they age: from grayish babies to yellow and brown tones developing later. They typically have bat-shaped saddle patches with dark spots in between, although the Suriname locality has more of an hourglass shape to its pattern. constrictor is what most people think of when they hear the name: big, thick, and bright red patterning on the tail - although they tend to be much more docile than most assume. 13.Boa constrictor constrictor (“True” Red-Tailed Boa)ī. The super form is noted as having a beige base color, reduced patterning, and a dark tail. An animal with one copy of the gene has black flecking and reduced saddles. The reason this morph is referred to as striped is because the normal saddle patterning has fused to create stripes that go down the length of the animal’s body.Īrabesque is the name of a co-dominant gene that causes a change in color and pattern. Striped is the name for a pattern mutation that also causes a more intense red color to the tail of the snake. In its super form, it causes an issue with lack of coordination in the snake and general weakness.

They seem to have a higher amount of all the common pigments resulting in more intense colors. It causes the saddles in the normal pattern to form a blocky look down the sides of the snake. AztecĪztec is a color and pattern mutation. This is a recessive gene that causes a change to both color and pattern of the snake. Leopard boas are a morph of the Sonoran Boa ( Boa sigma) which was recently determined to be its own species. The same combination using a Kahl albino instead is referred to as a moonglow, though most snakes look very similar. The names refer to the same combination of genes using different lines of albino.Ī Sharp line albino with anery and hypo is called a snowglow, known for a very strong white coloration. This morph is the result of a snake displaying both the hypo and albino genes.Īny snake with this name will have both copies of the albino gene and at least one copy of the hypo gene. Sunglow is the name for snakes with an orange and white appearance. This morph tends to have a white look with some visible patterning. This is a hard morph to get since you need two snakes that both carry the anery and albino genes. In this case, it is a combination of the albino and anery traits. Snow is the result of two recessive genes being displayed in one animal.

Common boa constrictor