What is the difference between pythons and boas?

Most people are afraid of snakes because their bitescan be poisonous. But there are also non-venomous snakes in the world, which are no less dangerous than all other species. We are talking about pythons and boas, which hit their victims not with bites, but with a suffocating grip. They are able to open their mouths wide and swallow even large animals whole. There have been cases when these snakes attacked and swallowed even adults. Scientists have been studying these creatures for a very long time and are still making very interesting discoveries. For example, researchers recently found out that pythons lived on our planet even 47 million years ago. As part of this article, I propose to figure out the difference between pythons and boas, and also talk about the new discovery of scientists. Also consider a gruesome case starring one of these gruesome snakes.

Pythons and boas are one of a kind who choke their victims

Content

• 1 Who are pythons?
• 2 Who are boas?
• 3 Differences between pythons and boas
• 4 Origin of snakes
• 5 Python attack on humans

Who are pythons?

At the moment, scientists are aware of the existence68 types of pythons. These non-venomous snakes range in length from 2 to 10 meters. As a rule, they are colored brown, but there are also species with green skin. They inhabit the rainforests and wetlands of Africa, Asia and Australia. Due to their ability to swim, they prefer to settle near water sources. And so, most of the time they climb trees, and hunt at dusk or at night.

Pythons spend a lot of time in trees

Young pythons feed on small rodents andlizards. But adults can completely swallow large animals or even humans. But at the same time, some peoples are not afraid of them and even use snake meat for food. For some time, people caught them in order to obtain expensive leather, but then some species were given a conservation status. At the moment, pythons are often kept in zoos and even in home terrariums. In captivity, these snakes live up to 25 years.

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Who are boas?

In many ways, boas are similar to pythons.Most of them are also painted in dull colors, which helps them to remain unnoticed. Since pythons can be a great competitor to them, boas prefer to live in other places. They can be found in Mexico, Argentina and various parts of America. There is nothing more to tell about these creatures, everything interesting lies in their differences from pythons.

This is a boa constrictor. Can you already see the difference from python?

Differences between pythons and boas

The main difference between pythons and boaslies in the way they reproduce. Pythons are oviparous animals, that is, females lay eggs in special nests, where they hatch cubs. But boas are viviparous creatures and females carry children inside their bodies. Also, pythons have teeth on the premaxillary bones, while boas do not - some species are generally toothless. But to distinguish a python and a boa constrictor, you do not need to monitor their reproduction and look into their mouth. It is enough just to look at the head - if the snake has a bone on top of its eyes, it is a python. And if there is no bone, then it is a boa constrictor.

Boas have no bone over their eyes

See also: What does the most cruel snake in the world look like?

The origin of snakes

When exactly did pythons and boas appear on ourplanet, scientists do not know exactly. But recently, 47-million-year-old python fossils were found in the Messel quarry (Germany). New for science, but already extinct species of pythons was named Messelopython freyi. The length of the ancient snake was only a few tens of centimeters, from which it can be assumed that it ate small animals. How exactly the snake hunted them is still unknown to scientists. Perhaps, like the huge descendants, the discovered creature strangled its victims. After all, pythons and boas are the only snakes that strike their victims even without poison.

The same fossil python

Python attack on humans

There are many cases in history when a python attackedpeople and mercilessly swallowed them. One of these terrible cases occurred in 2018, in Indonesia. According to BBC News, a 54-year-old woman once disappeared in the province of Sulawesi. Locals organized a search and a few days later found sandals and a machete, next to which lay a huge python with a swollen belly. People suspected that the snake could swallow the woman and cut the body of the animal. To everyone's horror, the body of the missing woman was found inside, almost intact. Photos from the scene of these terrible events could be found on social media in Indonesia, but we will not publish them.