Candoia bibroni

Candoia bibroni
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Boidae
Subfamily:	Boinae
Genus:	Candoia
Species:	C. bibroni
Binomial name
Candoia bibroni (A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1844)
Synonyms
Enygrus Bibroni A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1844 Enygrus Bibroni — Jacquinot & Guichenot In Hombron & Jacquinot, 1853 Enygrus Bibronii — Günther, 1858 Enygrus bibronii — Boulenger, 1893 Enygrus bibroni bibroni — Sternfeld, 1920 Candoia bibroni — Frazzetta, 1959 Candoia bibroni bibroni — Stimson, 1969[1]

Common names: Bibron's bevel-nosed boa, Bibron's keel-scaled boa, Pacific tree boa,^[2] Fiji boa.^[3]

Candoia bibroni is a nonvenomous boa species endemic to Melanesia and Polynesia. Two subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.^[2]

Etymology

The specific name, bibroni, is in honor of French herpetologist Gabriel Bibron.^[4]

Description

The largest member of the genus Candoia, adults can grow to up to 1.5 m (5 ft) in total length (including tail). The color pattern usually consists of a pale brown, tan, or reddish brown ground color overlaid with stripes, blotches, or spots. However, some individuals have no pattern at all.^[3]

Geographic range

C. bibroni is found in Melanesia and Polynesia, including the eastern Solomon Islands (Olu Malau, Ugi, Rennell, Makira, Santa Ana, Santa Cruz, Bellona, Vanikoro and Utupua), the Banks Islands (Vanua Lava Island), Vanuatu, all three of the Loyalty Islands, the Fiji Islands (Rotuma, the Yasawa Group and the Lau Group), Western Samoa (Savai'i and Upolu islands), and American Samoa (Ta'u Island).

The type locality given is "l'île Viti" (possibly Viti Levu, Fiji Islands). Jacquinot and Guichenot (1853) list the type locality as "de l'archipel de Viti, Polynésie".^[1]

Feeding

The Pacific tree boa hunts for food both on the ground and in the trees, preying on birds, lizards, and mammals, including bats.^[3]

Subspecies

Subspecies[2]	Taxon author[2]	Common name	Geographic range
C. b. australis	(Montrouzier, 1860)
C. b. bibroni	(A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1844)

See also

• List of boine species and subspecies
• Boinae by common name
• Boinae by taxonomic synonyms

References

1. McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
2. "Candoia bibroni". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 14 July 2008.
3. Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
4. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M. 2011. The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Candoia bibroni, p. 25).

Further reading

• Boulenger GA. 1893. Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume I., Containing the Families ... ,Boidæ, ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (Enygrus bibronii, pp. 106–107).
• Dumeril AMC, Bibron G. 1844. Erpétologie générale ou Histoire naturelle complète des Reptiles. Tome sixième. Paris: Roret. xii + 609 pp. (Enygrus bibroni, pp. 483–484).

External links

• Candoia bibroni at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 14 July 2008.