cfreptiles & amphibians

IRCFREPTILES&AMPHIBIANS•19(2):117–125•JUNE2012

Nootherboascanbefoundwithinthousandsofmiles.TheymostlikelyhadtoraftacrossthePacifictogetto

wheretheynowreside.Triangular-shapedviper-likeheads,up-turnedsnouts,noheat-sensitivepits,andthick-keeledscaleswithflattenedbodiesseparatetheminstructure.Somearesemi-fossorialandsomehaveprehensiletails.Adultsizesrangefromadiminutivepencil-thin40cmtoover2m.Like

manyotherboas,theyliveinrainforestswithdenseunder-growth,highhumidity,andlotsofrainandprey.However,theseboasthriveequallywellindrygrasslands,woodlands,plantations, and around human dwellings. The genusCandoiaislikenootherboidgenus.Theyareuniqueindis-tributionandappearance,butareoverlookedbyherpetologi-calhobbyists. Candoiaisoneof13generainthreesubfamiliesinthefamilyBoidae(HendersonandPowell2007).Otherfamil-iargeneraareBoa (boas),Eunectes (anacondas),Epicrates(WestIndianandrainbowboas),andCorallus(Neotropicaltreeboas) of theAmericas.However, snakes in thegenusCandoiapossessneitherthesizeofEunectes,theiridescenceofEpicrates,thebrightTechnicolorcolorationofsomeCorallus,northepopularityofBoa.JerryConway,oneofthefirsthob-byiststogiveCandoiaarealchance,andthefirstinnovatoroftheircare,saiditbest:“[Candoia]arenaturallybeautiful…thereareno‘morphs’…noman-madenonsenseinvolvedwithCandoiaatall…theyareunderdogsofthesnakeworld…true,primitivewondersofthewild.”Theseboasarehid-

H U S B A N D R Y

IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • VOL15, NO 4 • DEC 2008 189TABLE OF CONTENTS

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E S

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 Treeboas (Corallus grenadensis) and Humans on Grenada: A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson 198

R E S E A R C H A R T I C L E S

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

.............................................Brian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212

C O N S E R V A T I O N A L E R T

World’s Mammals in Crisis ............................................................................................................................................................. 220 More Than Mammals ...................................................................................................................................................................... 223 The “Dow Jones Index” of Biodiversity ........................................................................................................................................... 225

H U S B A N D R Y

Captive Care of the Central Netted Dragon ....................................................................................................... Shannon Plummer 226

P R O F I L E

Kraig Adler: A Lifetime Promoting Herpetology ................................................................................................ Michael L. Treglia 234

C O M M E N T A R Y

The Turtles Have Been Watching Me ........................................................................................................................ Eric Gangloff 238

B O O K R E V I E W

Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann, J.S. Chanson, N.A. Cox, R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell 243

CONSERVATION RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Conservation Research Reports ................................. 245 NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History ................................. 247 NEWBRIEFS ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 248 EDITORIAL INFORMATION ..................................................................................................................................................... 251 FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ............................................................................................... 252

Front Cover. Shannon Plummer.Totat et velleseque audant mo estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque moditia erere nonsedis ma sectiatur ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos accullabo.

Back Cover. Michael KernTotat et velleseque audant mo

estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus

aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque

moditia erere nonsedis ma sectia-tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as

IRC

F

REPTILES & AMPHIBIANSC O N S E R V AT I O N A N D N AT U R A L H I S T O R Y

WWW.IRCF.ORG/REPTILESANDAMPHIBIANSJOURNAL

The Pacific Boas: Natural History and Husbandry of Candoia

ChristopherCarille

GardenofEdenExotics&ChrisCarillePhotography,NewYork,USA

Photographsbytheauthorexceptwherenoted.

117Copyright©2012.ChristopherCarille.Allrightsreserved.

ThisFijiIslandBoa(Candoia bibroni bibroni)fromVitiLevuisquiteathomebothonandofftheground.PhotographbyHelenR.Sykes.

ThisfemalealbinoViperBoa(Candoia aspera)waswild-caughtatabout3yearsofage.PhotographcourtesyofAlbinosUnlimited.

CARILLE

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IRCFREPTILES&AMPHIBIANS•19(2):117–125•JUNE2012

dengemsthathavebeensittingoutintheopen.Husbandryiseasy,asisproperlydeterminingthesexofindividuals,whicharenaturallycalmerthanmostoftheirrelatives,naturallyvariable,andbeautifullyuniqueamongtheboids.

Species and SubspeciesCandoia aspera(ViperBoa,akaNewGuineaGroundBoa)isthebest-knownspecies.Morefrequentlyencounteredinthereptileindustrythanitscongeners,thesesnakesarerelativelyabundantthroughouttheirrange.Theyoccurontheirname-sakeisland,NewGuinea,onIrianJaya,andonhundredsofotherIndonesianislandsandislets.ViperBoasareshortandstocky,resemblingdeathadders,anddisplayalotofvaria-tionintheircoloring.Theyrunthegamutfromblackandbrowntoorange,yellow,andgold,andcanbeblotchedorbanded.Themostimpressiveindividualsarefire-engineredwithredventralscales.ThesesnakeshavethethickestkeeledscalesofallCandoia,rangeinlengthfromabout55toover90cm(2–3ft)asadults,andspendalotoftheirtimeintheirwaterbowls,althoughinnaturetheyarecompletelyterrestrialandevensemi-fossorial.Twosubspeciesarerecognized:C. a. aspera (BismarckGroundBoa)andC. a. schmidti (NewGuineaGroundBoa). Two subspecies of Candoia bibroni are recognized.Candoia b. australis(SolomonIslandsTreeBoa)isprobably

thesecondmostwellknownspeciesofCandoia,althoughnotnearlyaswidelyavailableasC. aspera.SolomonIslandsTreeBoasarefoundthroughouttheislands,usuallyincoastalmangrovesorcultivatedareas.Theyvaryconsiderably incolorandpattern,withcolorsincludingreds,pinks,oranges,yellows,browns,grays,andblack.Patternsmaybeblotchedorsplotchy,lackingaltogether(uniformlycolored),orwithanalmostzigzagdorsalstripe.Additionally,thesesnakescanbecomelighterordarkerinthecourseofaday.Ihaveseenindividualschangefromadarkbrownish-redwithheavypat-terningtoalightpinkish-tanwithfaintpatterningoverthecourseofafewhours.ThehabitsofSolomonIslandsTreeBoasarealmostcompletelyoppositetothoseoftheViperBoas.Theyarearboreal90%ofthetime,sometimesevendrapedover limbs in theclassic fashionofaGreenTreePython(Morelia viridis).Theirthinbodieslendthemselvesnicelytoanarboreallifestyle,wheretheycanstretchacrossandmovebetweenbrancheswithease.Onlyrarelywillyouencounter individualscoiledontheground.Males rangefromabout90toover120cm(3–4ft)inlength,whilethelargerfemalescanexceed180cm(>6ft). Candoia b. bibroni(FijiIslandBoa)isknownfromFiji,Samoa,Tonga,andothersmallSolomonIslands.Theseboasaremostlyterrestrial,rarelyclimbing.FijiIslandBoasaredark

BoasinthegenusCandoiahavecharacteristicthick,keeledscales,asseeninthisSolomonIslandsTreeBoa(C. bibroni australis;top)andthisPacificGroundBoa(C. paulsoni;bottom).

TwocolorphasesintheSolomonIslandsTreeBoa(Candoia bibroni australis).

CARILLE IRCFREPTILES&AMPHIBIANS•19(2):117–125•JUNE2012

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reddish-brown,usuallywithfaintblotchingorbanding.Ventralscalesontheseboasarenormallycreamorbrownish,butocca-sionalindividualshaveredororangeventrals.Thesearethe

largestboasinthegenus;althoughmalesgrowfromabout90toover120cm(3–4ft)inlength,adultfemalescanexceed210cm(~7ft).RelativelylittleisknownaboutFijiIslandBoas,althoughtheyareprotectedthroughouttheirrange. Candoia carinata(NewGuinea,Pacific,orWaigeoIslandTreeBoa)isbyfarthesmallestandmostvariableinpatternof

GroundcolorsvaryconsiderablyinSolomonIslandsTreeBoas(Candoia bibroni australis)andcanbebrightorange.

Despitetheircommonname,NewGuineaTreeBoas(Candoia carinata)arenotinfrequentlyencounteredontheground.

FijiIslandBoas(Candoia bibroni bibroni)fromVitiLevutendtohaveadorsummoreblotchedthanstripedandventersvariouslymarbledwithblack.Theseboasarethelargestinthegenus,reachinglengthsexceeding210cm(~7ft).PhotographbyHelenR.Sykes.

TheseFijiIslandBoas(Candoia bibroni bibroni)fromTeveuniIslandtypicallyhaveadistinctdorsaldiamondpatternwhencomparedtosnakesfromotherlocalities.PhotographbyHelenR.Sykes.


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PacificGroundBoas(Candoia paulsoni)cangetdarkerorlighterthroughouttheday(allthreeimagesareofthesameindividual).

AdultfemaleNewGuineaTreeBoas(Candoia carinata)reachmuchlargersizesthanmales(thefemaleisontheleftinthisphotograph)

TinyNewGuineaTreeBoas(Candoia carinata)clearlydemonstratethe“viper-like”headsthatcharacterizesnakesinthisgenus.


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speciesinthegenus.Thesesnakesfrequentlyareencounteredonlowshrubberyaroundhumandwellingsandplantations.NewGuineaTreeBoascanbefoundclimbing,coiledontheground,andevenburrowing.Individualsareusuallyblotched,withflowerypatterning,buttheycanbestriped,banded,oruniformlycolored.Groundcolorscanbegray,tan,yellow,cream,orreddish-brown,withmostamottledgrayandwhitesimilartoHyla marmorata(theMarbledTreeFrog).Mottledindividualsarequitecryptic,blendingextremelywellwithtreebark.Allindividualshaveadistinctiveyellow-creamdor-salstripejustanteriortoandawhiteventralspotposteriortothecloaca.Adultsizesrangefrom~40–60cm(16–24in),andeventhelargersnakesarenotmuchthickerthanaSharpiehighlighter.SnakesfromWaigeoIslandarealmostalwaysbrownandtanwithadarkstriperunningdorsallyfromtheheadallthewaytothetipofthetail.Someindividualshaveabrokendorsalstripe.SomeauthoritieshavesuggestedthatWaigeoIslandCandoia areaseparatesubspeciesofC. cari-nata,butthishasnotbeenverified.Twosubspeciesarerec-ognized,C. c. carinata(WesternNewGuineaTreeBoa)andC. c. tepedeleni (Tepedelen’sTreeBoa). Candoia paulsoni(PacificorSolomonIslandsGroundBoa)prefersdrygrasslandsandwoodedareas,butcanbefoundonthegroundandclimbingthroughpineappleandcoffeeplantations.Backgroundcolorsinthisspeciesrunthegamutfromred,gold,orange,andtantobluish-brown.Afewleucisticindividualshavebeenfound.Patternsconsistofadarkdorsalzigzagfromheadtotail.TheIsabelIslandBoa(theprettiestofallCandoia),apossiblesubspecies,isalocalpatternvariantthatusuallyhasawhitegroundcolorwithdarkdorsalstriping.SimilartoC. australis,C. paulsonihastheabilitytobecomedarkerandlighterthroughouttheday.Adultsofthisspeciesaverageabout90cm(~3ft)formalesandabout150cm(~5ft)forfemales.Sixsubspecies

arerecognized,C. p. paulsoni(SolomonGroundBoa),C. p. vindumi(Vindum’sGroundBoa),C. p. tasmai (Tasma’sGroundBoa),C. p. mcdowelli (McDowell’sGroundBoa),C. p. sadlieri(Sadlier’sGroundBoa),andC. p. rosadoi(Rosado’sGroundBoa). Candoia superciliosa(PalauBevel-nosedBoa)istheleastknownspeciesofCandoia.Untilrecently(withinthelasttenyears),theseboaswereconsideredasubspeciesofCandoia carinata,thereforemuchoftheinformationonthemactuallyappliestothenaturalhistoryoftheNewGuineaTreeBoa.TheyarefoundontheislandsofPalauandNgeaur(Angaurisland).Adaptingwelltodisturbance,theseboasliveindefor-estedareas,aswellasbananaandtaroplantations.AswithC. carinata,theyarethin,arborealsnakeswithprehensiletailsthatcanbefoundinlowshrubberyandontheground.ColorationinthePalauBevel-nosedBoavariesfromyellowandredtoblack,withpatternsofdullorbrightlycontrast-ingstripes,spots,mottling,orzigzags.Theseboashavethedistinctivewhitespotbehindthecloaca,characteristicoftheNewGuineaTreeBoa,andenlargedscalesabovetheeyes.Twosubspeciesarecurrentlyrecognized,C. s. superciliosa(NorthernBelauBevel-nosedBoa)andC. s. crombiei(NgeaurBevel-nosedBoa).

Candoia in the Reptile TradeCaptive bred-and-born Candoia are virtually impossibletofind,andthisdoesnotbodewellforconservation.Iamnotatree-huggingconservationnut—I’veworkedfortreecompanies,clearingacresofland;keepdozensofsnakes;andcreateahugecarbonimprintwithallofmytraveling.Iam,however,againsttheimportationandexportationofmanyspecies.Animalssufferandmanydieorareill,malnourished,orinfestedwithparasites.Inadvertentlyimportedmitescaninfectotherwisehealthyindividualsincollections.Ibelieve

ThecharacteristicdarkdorsalzigzagpatternisevidentinthisPacificGroundBoa(Candoia paulsoni).


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thatsmallnumbersofpopularspeciesshouldbeimported,bred,anddistributed.Whatevercanbedonetolimitdeaths,minimizeparasiticinfections,andincreasethenumbersofhealthy,“tame”snakesinthetradeisthebestoption.Snakesmakegreatpets,butwithoutconservationwecannotmain-tainviablewildpopulations.Iwouldhatetoseeaspeciesdis-appearfromthewildbecauseIwantedtoputasnakeinatankjusttoadmireit.Thatsaid,almostallavailableCandoia arewild-caught, areusuallydehydrated,andmanycomeinfestedwithmitesorotherparasites. WiththeexceptionofC. aspera, Candoiaarenaturallycalm,but youwant to look for an individual that lookshealthyandisactivewhenheld.Youshouldtrytobuyyoursnakefromavendorthathassomeknowledgeofthespeciesratherthanapersonwhocanonlytellyouthecountryfromwhichitwasexported.Aswithallnewsnakes,theyshouldbequarantined,rehydrated,andleftaloneuntiltheyacclimate.Oncehome,I’llsoakthesnakeinawaterbathtorehydrateit.ThismeansputtingthesnakeinaRubbermaidcontainerforafewhourswithafewinchesofcleanwaterandabranchonwhichitcanclimb.Afterrehydration,Iholdnewindividualsinaseparateroomfortwotofourmonths,checkingformitesandotherillnesses(andtreatingthemasnecessary)beforeImergethemintotherestofmycollection. Disposition.—AlmostallCandoia arehesitanttobite,andiftheydo,itisonlytodeterminewhatyouare(i.e.,toseeifyou’retasty).Candoia b. australis rarelyeverbitesunlessyouarerestrainingit;C. carinatawillbiteforthesamereason,butissosmallthatitcanbarelybiteapinkyfinger;C. b. bibroni andC. paulsoni will bitewhenunsettled,butmostwillsitstillforacagecleaningaslongastheyarenotmovedtoomuch.ContrarytoalltheotherspeciesofCandoia,C. asperacanbedownrightmean.TheyarebyfartheCandoiamostinclinedtobite.However,aswithallsnakes,captive-bredindividu-alswillalmostalwaysbemoredocilethanindividualsthatarewild-caught,andeventhelattercanbecalmedifhandledfrequentlyandgently.

Morphs.—Untiltheendof2011,noCandoiamorphswereknown(otherthanasingleleucisticC. paulsoniwithwhichJerryConwayhadbeenworking).Recently,severalalbinoprojectshavepoppedup.AlbinosUnlimited, Inc.announcedtheimportationofawild-caughtalbinoC. aspera.Ifallgoeswell(andifthetraitprovestoberecessive),albi-nosshouldenterthehobbywithinthenextcoupleofyears.Anotherprivatehobbyist is currentlyworkingwithpos-siblehetalbinoIsabelIslandGroundBoas(C. paulsoni)andhypomelanisticCandoia sp.StillanotherprivatehobbyistisworkingonproducingcalicoC. asperafromadarkmalewithrandomorangeandwhitesplotches.Lastly,althoughIamnotawareofanyprovenlinesofhypos,somehypoC. carinata,C. aspera,andC. b. australisarefloatingaroundinprivatecollections.

ThisratherelaborateenclosureishometoseveralSolomonIslandsTreeBoas (Candoia bibroni australis).Itconsistsofa40-gallonbreedertankturneduprightandequippedwithclimbingvines,abirdhousewithfakevinesasamakeshifthideandhangout,climbingmesh,abigwaterbowl,andtropicalsphagnumandpeatsubstratetohelpmaintainhumidity.Temperatureandhumidityaremoredifficulttocontrolinsuchalargecontainerandneedtobecarefullymonitored.

TeethofSolomonIslandsTreeBoas(Candoia bibroni australis),likethoseofmanyboids,arecapableoffirmlyholdingandfacilitatingtheswallowingofprey—andofdeliveringapainfulbite.


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HusbandryHousing & humidity.—Adultscanbekeptin20to50-gallonaquaria,dependentonthesizeofthesnake.CandoiapaulsoniandC. bibroniwillutilizelargerenclosures,whereasthemorediminutivespecieswillbecomfortableinsmallertanks.ThetanksshouldhavesecuretopssinceCandoia willsurelytesttheirenclosuresforescaperoutes.Largewaterbowlsarealsoamusttoallowthesnakestosoak.Candoia asperacanoftenbefoundsoakingthroughouttheday. Humidityshouldbekeptat50–80%withdaytimetem-peraturesaround85°F.Atemperaturegradientshouldbecre-atedusingaheatlamporoutside-of-the-tankheatingmat,withahotspotat90°F.Nighttimetemperaturesshouldnotdropbelowthemid-70s.Thecageshouldbemistedtwoorthreetimesaweektoallowsnakestodrinkwateroffthesidesandhelpwithshedding.AhealthyCandoiawillshedaboutonceeverytwomonths. Provideplentyofbranchesforclimbingandtwoormorerefugiaatdifferentheights.Arborealspecies,suchasC. b. australis andC. carinata,arebetterhousedintallerterrariainwhichtheycanclimbhigher.Themoreterrestrialspecies,suchasC. paulsoni andC. aspera,canbehousedisshorterterrariaequippedwithathicksubstrateintowhichsnakescanburrow.ManypeoplelikeAspentreeshavings,butIparticu-larlylikeZooMedReptiBark(firtreepieces)foritscontrolof“snakesmell”anditsabilitytoholdmoisture.Candoiaare

allambushpredatorsandwillusethebranchestowaitinacoiled“S,”burrowandwaitforpreytocomeby,orsitbytheentranceoftheirhideandstrikewhenpreyisinrange. Feeding.—Adultsshouldbefedonceeverythreeweeks.Theyhaveafairlyslowmetabolismandcangoofffeedformonthswithoutlosinglargeamountsofweight.Mostwilleatmorefrequently—myadultswilleattwoadultmiceevery15–20days,butyouneedtowatchthattheydonotbecomeoverweight.Also,whendealingwithanewacquisition,waitatleastoneweekbeforeofferingfood.Thistimeallowsthesnaketoacclimate,withoutwhichitcanbecomestressedandgoofffeedpermanently. SinceCandoiaarenocturnalandhuntmostlyatnight,appropriatelysizedpreyshouldbeofferedafterdark.Fooditemsshouldonlybeslightlylargerthanthediameterofthesnake.Ifthefooditemismuchlarger,regurgitationislikely.Cuttingslitsintheskinofthefooditemwillspeeddigestion. MostadultCandoiareadilyacceptrodents.Forexam-ple,C. b. australis andC. b. bibroniwilleatrodents,butmanyindividualsfavorbirds(chicksandquailarefavorites).Candoiacarinata andC. paulsonimaybepickyandeatonlylizardsortreefrogs(Hemidactylusspp.andHylaspp.aretheeasiesttoobtain).IimaginethatC. superciliosa followssuitsincetheyaresosimilarto C. carinata.ViperBoas(C. aspera)aretheeasiesttofeed.Asthemostterrestrialofitsconge-ners,itsdietprobablyincludesmorerodentsthanthoseofthe

ExceptforViperBoas(Candoia aspera),speciesinthegenusCandoiatendtobeslender-bodiedsnakescapableofexploitinganumberoflifestyles,includingarboreality.ThisisCandoia carinata.


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otherspecies.Consequently,mostindividualsreadilyacceptfrozen/thawedrodents.

BreedingStartcoolingyourCandoia inearlyNovember,graduallydroppingnight-timetemperatures2–3°Feachweekuntiltheyreach~68°F,whilekeepingthedaytimetemperaturearound83°F.Thisregimenshouldbemaintainedfortwomonthsbeforeincreasingtemperaturesbacktonormal.Oncethecoolingperiodisdone,introducemultiplemalesintoafemale’senclosure.Malesshouldbeatleastthreeyearsold,whilefemalesshouldbeatleastfouryearsold.Iaminnorushwhenitcomestobreeding.Losingasnakebecauseitwasoverlystressedbybeingbredwhentoosmallortooyoungisnotarecommendedtactic. MULTIPLE MALES, MULTIPLE MALES,MULTIPLEMALES!!!WhenbreedingCandoiayouneedtousethreetofourmalesperfemale.Oneortwomalesmightwork,buttheoddsofsuccessfulmatinggreatlyincreasewhenthreeormoremalesareengaged.Ofcourse,youneedtomon-itorthesnakescarefullysince“wrestling,”aseriesoftwistingandconstrictingmotions,mayoccurbetweenthemalesand

youdon’twantanyofthembeinginjured.Aftersomecom-petition,thewinnerisselected.Ifamalehaspairedwiththefemale,removetheothermales.Copulationmaytakeplaceforacoupleweeks,afterwhichthefemalewillbecomenotice-ablyswollen.Atthispoint,Ileavethemalewiththefemaleforanotherweektoensurethatthefemaleisgravid.MostofmyCandoiawillbreedthroughoutJanuary. GestationlastsuptoninemonthsinCandoia,duringwhichthefemalemaygooffherfeedforweeksorevenacou-pleofmonths.Ifyourfemalecontinuestofeed,usesmallerpreyitemsthanyounormallywouldtopreventregurgitation.Duringthisperiod,manyfemalesavoidthehotspot,socareshouldbetakentoensureaheatgradientthroughouttheenclosure.Sincegestationlastssolongandfemalesmaygoofffeedduringmuchofthepregnancy,theyshouldonlybebredonceeverytwoyears.Givingthemayearoffallowsthemtorecoupthelostbodyweightandgetbacktobreedingsizewithoutunduestress.

Neonate CareCandoia,likeallboas,areviviparous.Theygivebirthtoany-wherefromtwotoover70livelittlewrigglers.Forthemost

ThisFijiIslandBoa(Candoia bibroni bibroni)fromKadavuIslandisshedding.Notetheelevatedperch.PhotographbyHelenR.Sykes.


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part,neonatecareisidenticalacrossthegenus,whatvariesisthenumberofbabiesthatwillrequirecare.Candoiacari-nataproducessmalllittersoftwotosixoffspring,whereasC. bibroni and C. aspera produce litters of intermediatesize(3–35)andC. paulsoniandC. superciliosa,with20toupwardsof80and12to50young,respectively,producethelargestlitters.Outliersexist,andasinmostsnakes,littersizeisextremelydependentonthesize,age,andhealthoftheparents. Youcansexmostneonatesimmediatelybylookingforspurs—inmostspeciesofCandoiatheywillbeclearlyevi-dentinmalesandabsentinfemales.Youwillwanttohousethemindividuallyinsmallenclosuresascannibalismhasbeenreported.Sizewilldependon the species,butgenerallya5-gallonaquariumisadequate.Makesureanyholesaretoosmallfortheneonatestoescape.Usingapaper-towelsubstratefacilitatescleaningandensuresthatnowoodchipsordebriswillbeaccidentallyingested.Temperaturesshouldbeafewdegreescoolerduringthedaythanwhatisprovidedforadults,maxingoutaround86°F.Asalways,atemperaturegradientshouldbeprovidedasmuchasispossibleinasmallenclosuresothesnakescanthermoregulate.Humidityshouldbekeptat50–70%,withcagemistingtwotothreetimesaweekanda

waterbowldeepenoughforsoaking.Asmallhideandsomeclimbingbranchescompletetheenclosures,providingneo-nateswithaplaceofsecurityandalocationtowaitforprey. Neonateswillshedtheirskinimmediatelyafterbirth,butyoushouldnotfeedthemforatleasttwoweeks.Atthistime,smallpinkymicecanbeoffered.Mostneonates,especiallyC. b. australis andC. carinata,willrefusethisfirstoffering.Someneonatesmaybetoosmalltocomfortablyeatapinkymouse(C. carinata isbornaboutaslongasapinkyfingerandasthinasapieceofstring).SinceCandoiafeedonlizardsinthewild,geckotailscanbeusedtoinitiatefeeding.Youcouldalsostartthemwithmousetailsorassistedfeedingmethods,butIwouldstronglysuggestthelatteronlyforanexperi-encedkeeper.Afterfeedinggeckotailsfortwocycles(everytwoweeks),nofoodshouldbeofferedforthreeweeksandalizard-scentedpinkymouseshouldthenbeoffered.Thisusuallydoesthetrickinstartingneonatesonmice.Insomecases,neonateswillstillrefusefoodandwillhavetocontinuetobefedwithlizards.Otherhobbyistshavereportedfeedingsuccesseswithearthworms,minnows,andeventunafish. Inhabitinghundredsof islands in theSouthPacific,newspeciesmaybewaitingtobediscovered,thesamewayCandoiaarewaitingtobediscoveredbysnakeenthusiasts.Now,however,isthetimetostartkeepingthemoreinter-estingspecies.Insteadoffollowingthecrowdofpeoplesali-vatingoverBallPythonmorphs,becomeamoreknowledge-ablekeeper.AddaCandoiatoyourcollection.Helpstoptheimportationofanimalsbyaddingcaptive-bredindividualstothehobby.Whoknows,youmayevenfindanewmorph…Hey,that’swhatmadeBallPythonssopopular!

AcknowledgementsSpecialthankstomyparentsforgivingmetheopportunityandfundsforschoolingandforlettingmeexploremypassionforherpetology;tomysiblingsDanandKatieforputtingupwithmyrandomrequeststotakecareofmysnakeswhenI’maway;toLindsay,whohasencouragedmetokeepwritingandre-read;andtoJerryConwayforofferingaquoteabouthisexperienceswithCandoia.

ReferencesConway,J.2009.The Candoia Page: Boas of the South Pacific.<www.kingsnake.

com/candoia/>.

Henderson,R.W.andR.Powell.2007.Thebiologyofboasandpythons:Aret-rospectivelooktothefuture.Appendix(listofspeciesandsubspeciesofcur-rentlyrecognizedboas,pythons,andpotentiallyrelatedtaxa),pp.18–22.In:R.W.HendersonandR.Powell(eds.),Biology of the Boas and Pythons.EagleMountainPublishing,LC,EagleMountain,Utah.

Mattison,C.2007.The New Encyclopedia of Snakes.PrincetonUniversityPress,Princeton,NewJersey.

O’Shea,M.2007.Boas and Pythons of the World.PrincetonUniversityPress,Princeton,NewJersey.

MaleSolomonIslandsTreeBoas(Candoia bibroni australis)havespursthatallowforaccuratesexdeterminationevenforneonates.

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