Suriname Red-Tailed Boas

Synonym

Boa constrictor constrictor (LINNAEUS, 1758)

Natural Distribution

Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guyana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, and Venezuela

Approximate Size

Females 2-2.5 meters (6-8 ft.)
Males 1.5-2.0 meters (5-6 ft.)

Conservation status

CITES Appendix II²

Description

True Red-tailed Boas are often sought after because of their beautifully colored red tails, unique dorsal saddles and often pink or purple coloration along the sides of their bodies. Boa c. constrictor are the nominate species of the complex, meaning they were the first of the species type to be described by LINNAEUS in 1758.

Characteristics

Suriname red-tailed boas vary greatly in appearance depending on their locality. Although hobbyists often will seek out specific traits in locality types such as Suriname’s with large “widow” peaks, or Guyanese boas with pick sides, the reality is that each locality is highly variable in color and pattern. This may also be contributed to the fact that several of the locality Boa c. constrictors localities overlap, and therefore natural mixing occurs. Finally, wild caught animals are collected from several localities, and exported with no reliable means of tracking where they were collected.

Husbandry compared to the smaller Boa imperator, although true red tail boas tend to be less tolerant of frequent handling. They also require higher humidity and warmer summer temperatures than the smaller Boa c. imperator.

Furthermore, breeding Boa c. constrictor is also a greater challenge than other Boa c. spp., requiring cooler nigh time lows (66-68 F), dryer days, and often longer cooling periods to coax them into breeding.

Unfortunately, there are still many thousands of wild caught or farmed boas imported each year. As a result, imported animals tend to fare poorly in comparison to captive bred individuals, stressing more easily and plagued with both internal and external parasites. However, with captive breeding so common, as a result its very easy to find well established captive bred offspring.