Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Colombians? Really? Glance at the range map, however, and you discover that they are found in at least ten nations:

Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guiana, Suriname, French Guiana, Brazil.

Does anyone else besides me see the folly of naming ANY species after political boundaries into which they do not fit?

As usual, information available on the Internet about this species is VERY sparse. Much information that I found was incorrect, and some information, especially Care Sheets, has simply been copied almost verbatim from site to site.

(As with so many other topics, when no one takes the time to research & verify, instead simply trusting blindly and copying from a prior source.)

I realize that there are three powerful truths about "Colombians":

1. They are not from wet tropical forests. They are from dry tropical forests and drier coastal regions.
2. They don't require as much humidity as the other, southern species.
3. They are not known to intergrade with any other subspecies (unlike Brazilians).

When I was researching mine, worried about providing the proper humidity, I quickly learned that the prior owner had taken no special precautions whatsoever. He kept the snake in a rack, with dry bedding, only occasionally misting the enclosure. The snake was with him for at least two years, and grew into a healthy, bulky adult.

I"m most curious about where original breeding stock came from, since the source may or may NOT have been Columbia. Knowing modern reptile dealers and the high incidents of poached animals, the origin for most specimens in the United States may just as easily have been Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Guiana, Suriname or a province in Brazil.

When I crossed over to Brazilian Rainbow Boa websites, they often repeated the same very interesting claim: "They were imported in high numbers during the 1980s and 1990s from Suriname". (There were NOT imported from Brazil - so why are they not called Suriname Rainbow Boas in the trade?)

If any dealers or hard-core herpers out there have any insight into the likely origins of Browns, please reply.

1.0 Florida Kingsnake
0.1 Sonoran Desert Boa ("Mexican" Rosy Boa)
1.0 Brown Rainbow Boa ("Colombian" Rainbow Boa)

1.0 Eastern Box Turtle
1.0 Three-toed Box Turtle

True, and you made a good point.

Point taken. I keep my 55-gallon vivarium with a screen cover, and I mist daily. I also have a salad bowl as a soak dish, concealed in the corner in a very nice naturalistic setup.

I've also selected porous lava rocks which will keep pockets of water on them for hours. One plastic plant is especially dense and retains moisture well, too. My setup should be fine.

While he's mostly calm & placid, handling is the biggest issue. Prior owners were boys, and then the man with a snake rack. I don't think that he was handled much, or properly, and he was likely never taken outside. As a young adult, he's just now learning what it's like to explore, climb, feel sunshine & wind and engage with a Human.

He gets daily handling now, with outside exercise on warm, sunny days. I have a large back yard with shrubs and open areas for ideal supervising while he enjoys nature.

It would be interesting to know what region or port city they were known to ship out of, thanks for your efforts.

Only range map I can find for Epicrates maurus:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3166281/

When I look at the range map, I can tell that it is incomplete. It shows huge gaps in the Savanna regions of Venezuela wherer the species is likely common. Same for regions of Guyana & Suriname.

Based on the common name (Colombian), their actual range map, and knowing that many "Brazilian" rainbow boas were imported from Suriname, my guess is that Venezuela or Suriname may have been the origins for most captive-bred animals.

That all original captive stock came from ONLY Colombia seems quite unlikely - especially when one considers how common animal & reptile poaching is in most poor nations.

Origins of imported species is an esoteric topic, at best.

Your tip may be helpful. Thanks for your input & engagement.

"We're after the same rainbow's end...
...waiting 'round the bend...