Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Firstly,

Jeff, this young female BRB of mine was fathered by one of the offspring from your stock. I always figured I was getting a great animal, but when I found out who the parents were... damn.

My little girl has a lot to live up to now...

Anyway, on to the questions:

Do you have any knowledge or experience with specimens from Trinidad? Now that the US has sparked my interest in herps, when I get a chance to visit in August I will be trying to do some herping and research on the laws there, etc... maybe even bring a pair back? Hmmmm...

If you aren't familiar, it is my understanding that Trinidad and Tobago have the largest biodiversity per capita in the Caribbean, and are second only to Costa Rica in the Western Hemisphere. These two islands have their own specimens of BCC, RB, some Tree Boas, and even Anacondas. Not bad for a small pair of islands...

I am wanting to learn anything I can about the snakes of this region. Most are very similar to those found in Northern Venezuela and Guyana. I know there are tons of classifications of Epicrates cenchria, but the Trinidadian taxonomy is listed as Epicrates cenchria maurus, the Colombian variety. From the research I have done, 'maurus' defines all rainbows from Costa Rica down to Colombia, across through Venezuela and Guyana and Suriname, and finally Trinidad and Tobago.

The only pictures I have ever seen show them closer to guyanan than colombian and almost look like a BrazilianXColombian sort of mix. What is your take on all of this?

Thanks...
-----
-Iman

1.1 Sugar Gliders (Gizmo and Nema)
2.0 Ball Pythons (Spot and Speck)
0.1 Colombian BCI (Belle)
1.0 Colombian Rainbow (Rex)
0.1 Brazilian Rainbow (Just arrived!!!)

Loving to Learn
Learning to Help
Helping to Love

Stimulate debates, stifle arguments.
Please be nice always.

Future Project Wishlist:
0.2 BP
1.0 BCI
0.1 CRB
1.0 BRB
1.1 ARB, GRB, DB & JCP

Ian,
. I have been sent several PICs of Rainbow Boas from Trinidad. Most of them look like Epicrates cenchria maurus. A few of them look like Guynana Rainbows or crosses between cenchria cenchria and cenchria maurus. Epicrates cenchria maurus does have a large range but it does not extend as far east as Surinam. AFAIK the eastern end of the range is in eastern Venezuela adjacent to Trinidad and Tobago and possibly extending into extreme western Guyana. The Rainbow Boas in Surinam are Brazilian Rainbows with some Guyanan Rainbows or naturally occuring intergrades in western Surinam. The Guyanan Rainbow Boas are not a classifieds subspecies. The appearance of Rainbow Boas from Guynana and eastern Venzuela and trinidad is highly variable. It is difficult to tell exactly what they are. An initial guess that they are naturally occuring intergrades of Brazilian and Colombian Rainbows does not hold up well because captive intergrades of those two subspecies do not look like Gyuanan Rainbows. The exact classification of these snakes will probably not be sorted out anytime soon.
Jeff

>>Firstly,
>>
>>Jeff, this young female BRB of mine was fathered by one of the offspring from your stock. I always figured I was getting a great animal, but when I found out who the parents were... damn.
>>
>>My little girl has a lot to live up to now...
>>
>>Anyway, on to the questions:
>>
>>Do you have any knowledge or experience with specimens from Trinidad? Now that the US has sparked my interest in herps, when I get a chance to visit in August I will be trying to do some herping and research on the laws there, etc... maybe even bring a pair back? Hmmmm...
>>
>>If you aren't familiar, it is my understanding that Trinidad and Tobago have the largest biodiversity per capita in the Caribbean, and are second only to Costa Rica in the Western Hemisphere. These two islands have their own specimens of BCC, RB, some Tree Boas, and even Anacondas. Not bad for a small pair of islands...
>>
>>I am wanting to learn anything I can about the snakes of this region. Most are very similar to those found in Northern Venezuela and Guyana. I know there are tons of classifications of Epicrates cenchria, but the Trinidadian taxonomy is listed as Epicrates cenchria maurus, the Colombian variety. From the research I have done, 'maurus' defines all rainbows from Costa Rica down to Colombia, across through Venezuela and Guyana and Suriname, and finally Trinidad and Tobago.
>>
>>The only pictures I have ever seen show them closer to guyanan than colombian and almost look like a BrazilianXColombian sort of mix. What is your take on all of this?
>>
>>Thanks...
>>-----
>>-Iman
>>
>>1.1 Sugar Gliders (Gizmo and Nema)
>>2.0 Ball Pythons (Spot and Speck)
>>0.1 Colombian BCI (Belle)
>>1.0 Colombian Rainbow (Rex)
>>0.1 Brazilian Rainbow (Just arrived!!!)
>>
>>Loving to Learn
>>Learning to Help
>>Helping to Love
>>
>>Stimulate debates, stifle arguments.
>>Please be nice always.
>>
>>Future Project Wishlist:
>>0.2 BP
>>1.0 BCI
>>0.1 CRB
>>1.0 BRB
>>1.1 ARB, GRB, DB & JCP

Thanks Jeff,

I too have noticed a distinguishable difference between Guyanans and the 'maurus'. The good thing for me is that I am young. Given time and a hopeful continued interest in herps, maybe I can have something to do with sorting out the geographic subspecies of these beauts.

I can always dream can't I? ;p
-----
-Iman

1.1 Sugar Gliders (Gizmo and Nema)
2.0 Ball Pythons (Spot and Speck)
0.1 Colombian BCI (Belle)
1.0 Colombian Rainbow (Rex)
0.1 Brazilian Rainbow (Just arrived!!!)

Loving to Learn
Learning to Help
Helping to Love

Stimulate debates, stifle arguments.
Please be nice always.

Future Project Wishlist:
0.2 BP
1.0 BCI
0.1 CRB
1.0 BRB
1.1 ARB, GRB, DB & JCP