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Q: How to tell the differense between Boa's.
Posted By:

TomPiperni

In Relation To:

Deuce
So, was wondering where my Boa is from.

Columbia, Surinam, Guyana, ect...

Can anyone help?

If so, how do you tell them apart, or, do you have a link to a site that will help me learn about it?

Thanks a lot.

Attached Photos:






Points: 250
Topics: General Health , Skeletal , Livebearers
Species: Boas > Large Boas > Boa constrictor constrictor
Administrative: Show/Hide

Member Comment 10/1/2008 11:24:45 PM

mack1time
True BCC blood is so hard to find nowadays Most is tainted with BCI blood Unless you know for sure from the breeder or paperwork from the previous owner it is all a guessing game If I had to guess I'd Say Surinam somewhere in there
 
Author Comment 10/1/2008 11:26:46 PM

TomPiperni
Note: I don't really care where he's from. I would just like to know.
 
Member Comment 10/1/2008 11:37:04 PM

mack1time
My Bad I think it's in the boa constrictor manuel. The most sure way to tell BCI or BCC and what locale is a sub-caudel scale count on a complete shed if you want Exact Numbers You'll have to find the book or Google Bci vs BCC Hope that helps
 
Accepted Answer 10/2/2008 1:42:02 AM

Kaiyudsai
I would bet on that being a cross between BCC/ BCI........... it's got traits of both....has a BCC body type except for the head.... the tail is def BCI....saddles have a guyana look to them..........except for t of last saddle which looks strongly BCI.......... The belly is not marked like guyanas but more like a mix of Columbian BCI and guyana....................I would say Guyana BCC/ Columbian BCI cross...IMO...........
 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 1:56:01 AM

Jeffriey
I was waiting for you to coment. I knew you would impress me. I was guessing Guyana but the tail had me wondering.
 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 2:57:04 AM

Katie M
Jeffriey, I was with you.  I've already given my thoughts on Guyana, but I think we all have elected Kai as the final say in this place, LOL... I know that I'm running a lot of my new finds by him, so, yes, if he says there's Guyana, I feel that I must be learning something afterall :)
 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 3:04:31 AM

Kaiyudsai
Thanks guys...I appreciate the trust.........
 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 8:17:23 AM

Sparkle
Very pretty, regardless of what it is.  In response to your request about websites, Rio Bravo has lots of photos of boas from different locales:  www.riobravoreptiles.com
 
Author Comment 10/2/2008 10:15:05 AM

TomPiperni

Kai sounds like he knows his stuff lol.
Thanks for all the help everyone, really appreciate it.

 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 11:10:36 AM

Sonja K. Reptiles

Here's a link that you might also find useful:

http://www.myreptileplanet.com/showthread.php?t=358

I know the guy and he seems to know his stuff.

This part isn't necessarily directed at you, put curious about what others have to say. (I may be opening a can of worms.) As far as trying to tell the difference between guyanas and suris, aren't they basically the same snake?? Yes, they may come from a "different" location, but is that anything other than a man-made line on a map? Both can exhibit varying shades of tail color, etc. One of our Surinam's sides look quite lavender after he sheds, for example. I believe it would be impossible to tell the difference based only on a picture.

To me, it seems to be more of a selling feature than anything else - kind of like calling a Bcc a "True Red Tail" - it's for marketing - it basically tells people that the person selling the animal is aware of how much confusion there is on the topic. and has gone to using this term for the Bcc. 
Bci are "Common Boas"  (they aren't really "Red-Tailed boas" ) - but "common" doesn't sound very "appealing" - and sometimes "constrictor" is left off, too, because the general public relates that word with a BIG, scary snake.

Basically, it comes down to trusting who you are buying your snake from. If you get a snake and don't know if it's a Bci or a Bcc, I would think you probably have to assume it's a Bci (or cross). Although sometimes determining from a pic can be easy, it's not always possible.

Here's another link:
http://reptileguides.herpcenter.com/showthread.php?t=150

 
Member Comment 10/2/2008 8:41:04 PM

Kaiyudsai
Yeah basically they are the same snake......but I was referring to the market standard.... but yeah those are good links........and there is alot of variation among even just Surinams........it's really hard to tell exactly where origin is from unless you have a really reliable source.........but the line isn't that gray between the two subspecies
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