1. ectothermicreptilia reblogged this from herplove
  2. pureaka reblogged this from herplove
  3. herplove reblogged this from taxonomynow
  4. theawesomeeducationalblog reblogged this from taxonomynow
  5. taxonomynow posted this
Tagged as: biology. taxonomy. zoology. boa constrictor. snake. reptile. science. animal. nature. photography.

Boa Constrictors Get a Feel for Their Prey Ed. note: We welcome back guest blogger Greg Laden for a two-week blogging tour on Surprising Science. This is a story of snakes, islands and students. Let’s start with the snakes. Among the many different kinds of snakes are the constrictors: boas and pythons. They are close relatives that diverged millions of years ago. Pythons are found in the Old World (Africa and Asia) as well as Australia. Boas (family Boidae) are found in the New World (North, Central and South America including some Caribbean islands). All of them kill their prey by wrapping around it and squeezing it to death. Among the boas there is an island-dwelling form in Belize that is the subject of interest to conservationists, ecologists and, lately, behavioral biologists. This is the miniature boa of Snake Cayes, a group of islands off the coast of southern Belize. When I say “miniature” I mean that they range in length from 30 cm to about 2 meters (1 to 6 feet). This is small compared to the mainland boas of the same species, which can reach 4 meters (13 feet) in length. Read More

Boa Constrictors Get a Feel for Their Prey

Ed. note: We welcome back guest blogger Greg Laden for a two-week blogging tour on Surprising Science.

This is a story of snakes, islands and students. Let’s start with the snakes.

Among the many different kinds of snakes are the constrictors: boas and pythons. They are close relatives that diverged millions of years ago. Pythons are found in the Old World (Africa and Asia) as well as Australia. Boas (family Boidae) are found in the New World (North, Central and South America including some Caribbean islands). All of them kill their prey by wrapping around it and squeezing it to death.

Among the boas there is an island-dwelling form in Belize that is the subject of interest to conservationists, ecologists and, lately, behavioral biologists. This is the miniature boa of Snake Cayes, a group of islands off the coast of southern Belize. When I say “miniature” I mean that they range in length from 30 cm to about 2 meters (1 to 6 feet). This is small compared to the mainland boas of the same species, which can reach 4 meters (13 feet) in length.

Read More

--- 4 months ago --- 8 notes ---