Boa constrictor Page

We recently received some very interesting information from Francis C. Vasquez, a Bolivian herpetoculturist and friend of ours. Francis is engaged in a project in Bolivia that aims to save Boa c. amarali from extinction.

He told us that the distribution area of Boa c. constrictor and Boa c. amarali is exactly the same. Nevertheless no integration of both subspecies occurs there.

Some integrades were found, where actually a complete mixing should have occured. Francis and his team found no answer to this.

As one can see in the photo, the Bolivian Boa c. amarali resemble the light North Brazilian redtails (Boa c. constrictor),
however, they have a very short tail and do not
reach their size.

Boa c. amarali, Bolivia (adult male)

Females can reach a size of about 8 feet in length. As all short tail boas, they are excellent feeders. There are no reports
about a frequently occuring regurgitation
syndrome in Bolivian amaralis

Nevertheless, babies should be fed carefully

Boa c. amarali, Bolivia (adult female)

In our experience, raising these animals does not cause the problems associated with redtail boas. But on the other
hand, they are surely not as hardy in digestion
as common Boa constrictor are

Boa c. amarali, Bolivia (baby)

Interestingly, the aberrant saddle pattern is not rare in captive bred Bolivian amarali. This appears to be genetically determined.

In the above photo you can see a reverse striped female,
and the animal on top of this page also has a stripe
in the first dorsal third.

Boa c. amarali, Bolivia (subadult female)