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Natural History and Husbandry of Candoia

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Natural History and Husbandry of Candoia WWW.IRCF.ORG/REPTILESANDAMPHIBIANSJOURNALTABLE OF CONTENTS IRCF REPTILES & IRCF AMPHIBIANS REPTILES • VOL &15, AMPHIBIANS NO 4 • DEC 2008 • 19(2):117–125189 • JUNE 2012 IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS CONSERVATION AND NATURAL HISTORY TABLE OF CONTENTS HUSBANDRY FEATURE ARTICLES . Chasing Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) in Wisconsin: On the Road to Understanding the Ecology and Conservation of the Midwest’s Giant Serpent ...................... Joshua M. Kapfer 190 . The Shared History of TreeboasThe (Corallus grenadensis Pacific) and Humans on Grenada: Boas: A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson 198 NaturalRESEARCH History ARTICLES and Husbandry of Candoia . The Texas Horned Lizard in Central and Western Texas ....................... Emily Henry, Jason Brewer, Krista Mougey, and Gad Perry 204 . The Knight Anole (Anolis equestris) in Florida Christopher Carille .............................................Brian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212 Garden of Eden Exotics & Chris Carille Photography, New York, USA CONSERVATION ALERT Photographs by the author except where noted. World’s Mammals in Crisis ............................................................................................................................................................. 220 . More Than Mammals ...................................................................................................................................................................... 223 . The “Dow Jones Index” of Biodiversity ........................................................................................................................................... 225 o other boas HUSBANDRYcan be found within thousands of miles. many other boas, they live in rainforests with dense under- NThey most likely. Captive had Careto raftof the Centralacross Netted the Dragon Pacific ....................................................................................................... to get to growth, high humidity, Shannonand lots Plummer of rain226 and prey. However, where they now reside. Triangular-shaped viper-like heads, these boas thrive equally well in dry grasslands, woodlands, PROFILE up-turned snouts, no heat-sensitive pits, and thick-keeled plantations, and around human dwellings. The genus . Kraig Adler: A Lifetime Promoting Herpetology ................................................................................................ Michael L. Treglia 234 scales with flattened bodies separate them in structure. Some Candoia is like no other boid genus. They are unique in dis- are semi-fossorial andCOMMENTARY some have prehensile tails. Adult sizes tribution and appearance, but are overlooked by herpetologi- . range from a diminutiveThe pencil-thinTurtles Have Been 40Watching cm Meto ........................................................................................................................over 2 m. Like cal hobbyists. Eric Gangloff 238 BOOK REVIEW Candoia is one of 13 genera in three subfamilies in the . Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann,family J.S.Boidae Chanson, (Henderson N.A. Cox, and Powell 2007). Other famil- R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell 243 iar genera are Boa (boas), Eunectes (anacondas), Epicrates CONSERVATION RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published(West Conservation Indian Research and Reports rainbow ................................. boas), and 245 Corallus (Neotropical NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS : Summaries of Publishedtreeboas) Reports of on Naturalthe Americas. History ................................. However, 247 snakes in the genus NEWBRIEFS ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 248 EDITORIAL INFORMATION .....................................................................................................................................................Candoia possess neither the size of Eunectes 251 , the iridescence of FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ...............................................................................................Epicrates, the bright Technicolor coloration 252 of some Corallus, nor the popularity of Boa. Jerry Conway, one of the first hob- byists to give Candoia a real chance, and the first innovator of their care, said it best: “[Candoia] are naturally beautiful … Front Cover. Shannon Plummer. thereBack are Cover. no ‘morphs’Michael Kern … no man-made nonsense involved Totat et velleseque audant mo Totat et velleseque audant mo estibus inveliquo velique rerchil withestibus Candoia inveliquo velique at all rerchil … they are underdogs of the snake world erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus erspienimus,… true, quosprimitive accullabo. wondersIlibus of the wild.” These boas are hid- aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque fugiatis maionsequat eumque moditia erere nonsedis ma sectiatur moditia erere nonsedis ma sectia- ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as accullabo. This Fiji Island Boa (Candoia bibroni bibroni) from Viti Levu is quite at This female albino Viper Boa (Candoia aspera) was wild-caught at about 3 home both on and off the ground. Photograph by Helen R. Sykes. years of age. Photograph courtesy of Albinos Unlimited. Copyright © 2012. Christopher Carille. All rights reserved. 117 CARILLE IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 19(2):117–125 • JUNE 2012 den gems that have been sitting out in the open. Husbandry is easy, as is properly determining the sex of individuals, which are naturally calmer than most of their relatives, naturally variable, and beautifully unique among the boids. Species and Subspecies Candoia aspera (Viper Boa, aka New Guinea Ground Boa) is the best-known species. More frequently encountered in the reptile industry than its congeners, these snakes are relatively abundant throughout their range. They occur on their name- sake island, New Guinea, on Irian Jaya, and on hundreds of other Indonesian islands and islets. Viper Boas are short and stocky, resembling death adders, and display a lot of varia- tion in their coloring. They run the gamut from black and brown to orange, yellow, and gold, and can be blotched or banded. The most impressive individuals are fire-engine red with red ventral scales. These snakes have the thickest keeled scales of all Candoia, range in length from about 55 to over 90 cm (2–3 ft) as adults, and spend a lot of their time in their water bowls, although in nature they are completely terrestrial and even semi-fossorial. Two subspecies are recognized: C. a. aspera (Bismarck Ground Boa) and C. a. schmidti (New Guinea Ground Boa). Two subspecies of Candoia bibroni are recognized. Candoia b. australis (Solomon Islands Tree Boa) is probably Two color phases in the Solomon Islands Tree Boa (Candoia bibroni australis). the second most well known species of Candoia, although not nearly as widely available as C. aspera. Solomon Islands Tree Boas are found throughout the islands, usually in coastal mangroves or cultivated areas. They vary considerably in color and pattern, with colors including reds, pinks, oranges, yellows, browns, grays, and black. Patterns may be blotched or splotchy, lacking altogether (uniformly colored), or with an almost zigzag dorsal stripe. Additionally, these snakes can become lighter or darker in the course of a day. I have seen individuals change from a dark brownish-red with heavy pat- terning to a light pinkish-tan with faint patterning over the course of a few hours. The habits of Solomon Islands Tree Boas are almost completely opposite to those of the Viper Boas. They are arboreal 90% of the time, sometimes even draped over limbs in the classic fashion of a Green Tree Python (Morelia viridis). Their thin bodies lend themselves nicely to an arboreal lifestyle, where they can stretch across and move between branches with ease. Only rarely will you encounter individuals coiled on the ground. Males range from about 90 to over 120 cm (3–4 ft) in length, while the larger females can exceed 180 cm (>6 ft). Candoia b. bibroni (Fiji Island Boa) is known from Fiji, Boas in the genus Candoia have characteristic thick, keeled scales, as seen in this Solomon Islands Tree Boa (C. bibroni australis; top) and this Pacific Samoa, Tonga, and other small Solomon Islands. These boas Ground Boa (C. paulsoni; bottom). are mostly terrestrial, rarely climbing. Fiji Island Boas are dark 118 CARILLE IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 19(2):117–125 • JUNE 2012 reddish-brown, usually with faint blotching or banding. Ventral scales on these boas are normally cream or brownish, but occa- sional individuals have red or orange ventrals. These are the Fiji Island Boas (Candoia bibroni bibroni) from Viti Levu tend to have a dorsum more blotched than striped and venters variously marbled with black. These boas are the largest in the genus, reaching lengths exceeding 210 cm (~7 ft). Photograph by Helen R. Sykes. Ground colors vary considerably in Solomon Islands Tree Boas (Candoia bibroni australis) and can be bright orange. Despite their common name, New Guinea Tree Boas (Candoia
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