Boa Snakes Essay, Research Paper

Boa is the common name for about

6 genera and 50 species of SNAKES that

constitute the family Boidae. Closely related to

PYTHONS, the family includes the largest of all

snakes, the water-dwelling ANACONDA of

South America. Among other boas are the smaller

sand boas, Eryx, and the woodsnakes,

Tropidolphus and related genera. The typical boa

genera are ground or tree dwellers of tropical

America–as are the woodsnakes–and the island

of Madagascar, whereas the sand boas are

semidesert burrowing snakes of northern Africa

and southern Asia. The two North American

boas–the rosy and the rubber boa–resemble the

sand boas. All boas are nonpoisonous and kill by

constriction; unlike the pythons, they bear live

young. They are primitive snakes with anatomical

features that reflect their lizard ancestry, such as

bony vestiges of hind limbs that terminate in

external claws, and the presence–except in the

woodsnakes–of two functional lungs. Most boas

are active at night and have pits along their lips that

are sensitive to the heat of prey. The snakes are

usually handsomely marked and often iridescent,

the most striking being the rainbow boa, Epicrates

cenchis. The species best known as "boa" is the

boa constrictor, Constrictor constrictor, which

ranges from Mexico to Argentina and the West

Indies. The snake grows up to 3.7 m (12 ft) long,

but a 5.6-m (18.5-ft) specimen is on record.

Picture Caption[s] The boa constrictor, C.

constrictor, is a New World snake that grows up

to 3.7 m (12 ft) long. It kills rodents and other

small animals by striking and coiling around its

victim with incredibly fast movements. Once

wrapped around its prey, the boa constrictor

tightens its coils, preventing the animal from

breathing. It then swallows its meal whole.