Candoia bibroni

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

Candoia bibroni
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Boidae
Genus: Candoia
Species:
C. bibroni
Binomial name
Candoia bibroni
Synonyms[1]
  • 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
Common names: Bibron's bevel-nosed boa, Bibron's keel-scaled boa, Pacific tree boa,[2] Fiji boa.[3]

Etymology

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

Description

C. bibroni is 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]

Distribution and habitat

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) Solomon Islands tree boa
C. b. bibroni (A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1844) Pacific tree boa

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, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (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, new species, pp. 483–484). (in French).
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