6- Boa Constrictor Can Live Over 20 Yearsīoa constrictors are one of the few snakes that can live over 20 years. This includes the ability to hypnotize prey. Given that there are no snakes that can live that long it seems safe to assume that most of Kaa’s attributes are fictional. One of the reasons for this myth may be Disney’s The Jungle Book, however, the snake of Kaa is an unknown species of snake that in the original story lived well over 100 years. In reality, a boa constrictor isn’t going to take the chance of letting its prey get away by waiting for them to freeze up in fear instead they will strike first launching their heads at their prey to latch on. The fear makes the snake’s prey freeze up and then the snake attacks. This isn’t true some scientists place this in a fear tactic category. There are several myths that boa constrictors, as well as other snakes, can hypnotize their prey. Rather, they set a trap and will spring upon their prey when the moment arises. 5- Boa Constrictors are Ambush Predatorsīoa constrictors do not hunt their prey. With most sized meals, it will take anywhere from 6 to 10 days to digest and can lead to 3 to 5 weeks of the snake not needing another meal.ĭuring the digestion period, the boa constrictor is rather dormant as it has no need for food and a lot of its body’s resources are being sourced to the digestive process of the body. The size of their previous meal will determine several things like digestion time and when they will need to eat again. Boa constrictors have strong stomach acid that works to break down their prey and transfer the nutrients throughout their long bodies. 4- Boa Constrictors Digest Their Prey Through Some Very Strong Stomach Acidīoa constrictors do not chew their food so the result is a lot of work for the snake’s stomach. With the boa constrictors larger size, they rarely have a hard time killing their prey either they just bite on, wrap themselves around their prey, and begin to squeeze until they cut off the creatures circulation and then they have a meal their next meal. The size of the animal will determine how long before the boa constrictor will have to eat again. While young and small they will eat rodent and small birds.Īs they grow larger so does the prey that they eat, increasing to the point where boa constrictors will eat monkeys, wild boar, and deer. 3- Boa Constrictors Slowly Eat Larger Creatures as They Growīoa constrictors start small and grow to some very impressive lengths but with that growth requires a change in the food that they eat. The teeth are a way for the boa constrictor to buy the rest of its body some time to catch up with its head. However, these teeth are absolutely instrumental to the process as boa constrictor are not the fastest snakes so it takes some time to wrap themselves properly around their prey. While these teeth do draw blood they aren’t very dangerous and are not the boa constrictors main utility for killing that would be constriction. In a boa constrictor, they are used to latch onto their prey and hold tight while they wrap the rest of their body around their prey. 2- Boa Constrictors do not Use Their Teeth to Chewīoa constrictors have some sharp teeth but they aren’t used in the same way we use our teeth. Their use of constriction is not to suffocate their prey but rather they squeeze so tight that it shut off its prey’s circulatory system prevent blood from getting to their preys brain. With each one, it was found that the point of constriction wasn’t emphasized around the lungs but rather around the blood vessels leading to the brain. They rigged some anesthetized rats with pressure measuring devices and then dropped them into the cage with the boa constrictors. So a group of biologist set out to test this. This myth makes sense, after all, that seems to be what’s going on, but after watching the boa constrictor in action it was found that their prey was dying too quickly. It is a myth that a boa constrictor wraps itself around its prey in an attempt to suffocate them. 1- Boa Constrictors do not Kill Through Suffocation I was talking to my brother who had gotten a pet Boa Constrictor, and he kept pointing out what amazing creatures they were. As our conversation continued I realized there must be something that I am missing about this snake – why did he think it was so great? As my research began I found that they are amazing, and to give you a quick dive into the majesty of the boa constrictor, here are 27 interesting facts.
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