Reptiles · Squamata · Boidae

Rainbow Boa

Epicrates cenchria

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The rainbow boa is a medium-sized South American constrictor, chestnut with dark rings, whose scales produce a spectacular iridescence in sunlight: they break the light into every colour of the spectrum as if they were prisms. It is terrestrial and semi-arboreal, nocturnal and viviparous, and hunts rodents, birds and lizards.

Weight

2 kg – 5 kg

Size

1.5 m – 2.1 m

Lifespan

20 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

SavannaRainforestGrasslandCarnivore Nocturnal Solitary Reptile Savanna Rainforest Grassland

12countries 64parks11same family

Fun facts

GeneralIts skin throws rainbow iridescence, produced by the microstructure of its scales.
Its iridescence is not pigment: microscopic ridges on the surface of the scales diffract the light like a prism, breaking it into every colour of the spectrum. In direct sunlight the snake looks as though it were covered in oil on water.
The effect is only visible in individuals whose skin is in good condition, and it disappears just before a moult, when the outer layer turns opaque.
It is viviparous: it gives birth to up to twenty fully formed young after five months of gestation, without laying eggs.