Northern Rubber Boa
(Charina bottae)
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Northern Rubber Boa (Charina bottae) |
Color Photograph: © by and courtesy of Gary Nafis
Color Photograph: U.S. Department of Agriculture
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Charina umbratica The Southern Rubber Boa is limited to Southern California and does not overlap the range of the Northern Rubber Boa. Body with 44 or fewer scale rows. Northern Rubber Boa (Charina bottae) Identification: Snake14 to 32 inches in length. Body rotund and with a rubbery feel. Skin gathers in folds where the body bends. Color brown to gray-olive without any pattern. Belly yellow to cream-white. Tail blunt, tip rounded. Dorsal body scales small and smooth. Top of head covered with large, symmetrical scales. Underside of head without two pairs of enlarged scales (chin shields). Body with 45 or more scale rows. Geographical Variation: None. Range (see map below left): This is a species of the northwestern United States and southwestern Canada. The range extends from British Columbia in the north, southward to central California, and eastward to Montana, Wyoming, and Utah. Habitat: The Northern Rubber Boa is found in a variety of habitats including grasslands, chaparral, and forest. Food: Small mammals, frogs, salamanders. Behavior: This species is nocturnal and crepuscular. It is most often found hiding in or under rotting logs or under rocks. When threatened it hides its head and elevates its tail as a fake head, presumably to distract predators. Reproduction: The Northern Rubber Boa is a live bearer. Two to 8 young are born between August and November.
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Northern Rubber Boa (Charina bottae)
Similar Species Southern Rubber Boa (Charina umbratica)
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Similar Species
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