When was boa born

The snake swallows its prey whole. Food is digested by strong stomach acids. After a large meal, a boa doesn't need to eat again for weeks. A boa constrictor grows throughout its whole life, which can be 20 to 30 years.

An adult boa will generally weigh more than pounds 45 kilograms and grow to about 13 feet 4 meters long. Boa constrictors tend to live alone. Mother boas give birth to about 60 babies at a time! A baby boa is on its own from the start.

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Travel My Hometown In L. Subscriber Exclusive Content. Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars? How viruses shape our world. Boa constrictors also usually have marks on their heads, though the configuration can vary from species to species, said Heyborne. Typically, a stripe runs from the snout to the back of the head, and a dark triangle between the snout and the eyes continues behind the eyes, where it slopes down toward the jaw. Boa constrictors sometimes have spots across their bodies.

Boa constrictors have small, hooked teeth that they use to grab and hold prey. If their teeth fall out or become damaged, they can regrow them. Boa constrictors do not have fangs, but their jaws can stretch incredibly wide, allowing them to swallow large prey, according to National Geographic. Boa constrictors, like all members of the Boidae family, have pelvic spurs. They are found throughout the Americas, ranging from northern Mexico through Central America and into Peru on the west side of the Andes and south to Argentina on the east side.

They are also found on islands in the Caribbean and off the Pacific coast. Previously, scientists thought that all members of the family Boidae were New World snakes, but certain boa species have been discovered in remote areas such as Mauritius and New Guinea, according to the San Diego Zoo. Though stories often depict boa constrictors living in jungles, their habitats are actually much more diverse.

When they do reside in rainforests, they tend to stick to the edges or clearings. They can also be found in dry tropical deserts and semi-deserts, woodlands, scrub and agricultural areas. They are often found near streams or rivers, according to the ADW.

Boa constrictors are typically solitary, said Heyborne. They are mostly nocturnal, though they will sometimes come out during the day to sun themselves in cooler temperatures. These snakes, especially young ones, are semi-arboreal, said Heyborne. Though they are good swimmers, they prefer to be on dry land or in trees. Because of their large size, they tend to move in a straight line instead of slithering back and forth like smaller snakes, according to the San Diego Zoo.

Sometimes they hide in the burrows of medium-sized mammals. This affects their vision and as a result, they often stay still for a few days until their vision returns to normal, Heyborne said. When not clouded, boa constrictors have excellent vision.

Boa constrictors tend to be ambush predators that sit and wait for desired prey to pass from their tree perch or burrow, said Heyborne. He noted that active foraging behaviors have been noted in places with less dense prey populations. According to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park , bats are a favorite food, which boa constrictors catch while hanging from trees or the mouths of caves, snatching their prey as it flies by. Though most of their prey is not astoundingly large, boa constrictors will eat anything they can get their enormous, stretchable jaws around.

This includes monkeys, pigs and deer.