Mangrove Snake Husbandtry
REAR FANG
proper housing, temperment, etc. I would also like to know anything
anyone might know about breeding them. Does anyone know of any people
that are breeding them?
jeff jackman
A freind of mine has kept one adult male mangrove for
approx. 5 years. It is very docile during the day, but at night
it turns a little crazy. It feeds on dead rats and chicks with no
problems since he first aquired it as an import.
One thing to remember, the bite of a mangrove can be quite
serious, according to George Van Horn at Biotoxins inc. He told
me to take extreme care with mangroves, and coming from him, I
believe it.
Cheers, Bill T.
REAR FANG
regard to breeding...
*How much do you need to cool them before breeding them?
*What temp. do the eggs need to be incubated at?
Bryan Grieg Fry
FANG) wrote:
I have never fluctuated the temp. of the mangroves since they come from a
humid environment that does not have huge temp. variences. I have
however, mimicked the monsoon season and found that they are very "active"
:) during and after this. The eggs were kept at ~85 degrees with about
80% humidity and hatched just fine. One of the biggest problems that
begineers have is having the humidity too high, which causes higher
turbidity inside and thus could damaged the embryo by squashing it up
against the inside of the egg.
Good luck
Bryan
Erica Ramus
> *anybody know much about temp. cycles with mangroves? Esp. with
> regard to breeding...
>
> *How much do you need to cool them before breeding them?
>
> *What temp. do the eggs need to be incubated at?
In our Nov/Dec 1995 issue we ran an article
"Mangrove Snakes: Members of the genus Boiga in Thailand"
Galen Harris Valle
Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand
The rear-fanged snakes (Boiginae) are a subfamily of the Colubridae
consisting of about 73 genera ranging throughout North, Central, and South
America, as well as Africa, Madagascar, and Asia. The genus Boiga contains
23 species which occur primarily in Africa and Asia, with a single species
each found in Australia (B. irregularis) and the former USSR (B.
trigonata). About seven species occur in Thailand. They are primarily
nocturnal, arboreal species; all are egg-layers, and most are food
specialists.
The Boiga are currently in a bit of a predicament (along with a number
of other colubrid groups) in that they are venomous snakes which are not
included in one of the four families of łtrue˛ venomous snakes. They are
often referred to as łharmless to man˛ or even łnon-venomous˛ due to their
poorly developed venom apparatus, specialized venom (in some cases), and
the awkward (for striking purposes) rear placement of their grooved fangs.
łTruly venomous˛ or not, some Boiga have extremely potent venom
which is used to stop prey animals from struggling while being swallowed,
thus preventing injury to the snake. Since they are not constrictors,
these snakes must first get a good grip on their prey; then they inject
venom which will subdue the animal within seconds so that it can be eaten.
Boiga will rear and strike at humans and large animals when threatened;
however, only the front teeth can be utilized effectively in this
behavior, and the snake will typically bite and run without any
opportunity to inject venom. One or two other members of the Boiginae
(such as the African Boomslang) are reportedly able to flatten their lower
jaws and project the fangs forward in a manner that enables them to strike
and inject venom which has proven fatal to humans (there is a South
African antivenin for the Boomslang).
Envenomation of humans by Boiga is quite rare in the wild; as a result,
antivenin is non-existent (or in extremely limited supply). These snakes
should only be kept by professionals or advanced hobbyists, and the
precautions which apply to venomous snakes should be used when keeping
these species. Large specimens would have no problem getting a good enough
grip on a finger to put the handler into an expensive (especially if the
antivenin must be rushed from Kuala Lumpur or Cape Town) or dangerous
situation.
Two of the most commonly seen species of Boiga in Thailand are the
Mangrove Snake, B. dendrophila, and the Green Cat Snake, B. cyanea.
Although these two species are closely related taxonomically and do share
some similar habits, each snake has rather different habitat requirements.
MANGROVE SNAKE
B. dendrophila is a large snake (maximum length is about five feet). It
has glossy black dorsal scales with narrow yellow, vertical bands which
intrude somewhat into the creamy-black ventral and subcaudal areas. It is
sometimes confused with the Banded Krait, as they are both black and
yellow. However, the Banded Krait has thick, uniform, black and yellow
vertical bands of roughly the same width, while B. dendrophila is
primarily black with irregular yellow bands. The head is well set-off from
the neck, with the mouth area (both supralabial and sublabial) bordered in
yellow with thin, horizontal black lines. The inframaxillaries, gular, and
ventral areas under the chin are pale yellow. This snakeąs venom is
reportedly quite potent, and it has an extremely aggressive temperament;
it should be handled only with extreme care.
South Thailand is at the extreme north of the Mangrove Snakeąs
range. It can be found in coastal mangrove swamps and in trees which
overhang rivers and streams, and often several specimens can be found
inhabiting the same tree. These snakes typically rest in branches above
water, and they will drop into the river when threatened or in search of
fish to prey upon.
Although one would be hard-pressed to create the conditions found in
a tropical mangrove swamp at home, the hobbyist should ensure that most of
the snakeąs requirements are met. Provide a tall, well-planted terrarium
with a large water area (a sizeable dry area is not necessary, as the
snake will spend little or no time there). The terrarium should be humid
(85-95%) with a daytime temperature of about 86°F (slightly cooler at
night). If the enclosure is glass, a high humidity level can be
accomplished by heating the water with a typical aquarium heater. In
cooler climates, an infrared heat source is ideal; however, these heat
sources create hot spots, and care must be taken that the temperature does
not rise too high.
Plenty of branches should be provided with a lock-box (a wooden box
with a sliding door which can be closed from outside the enclosure) placed
in the upper branches. The snake will most likely hide in the box during
the day, making it a simple matter to trap the snake in its hide box when
maintenance is required. The enclosure should be secure and escape-proof,
and it should be kept in an area in which access is strictly limited.
The ground area of the terrarium will not be used often, so most of
the cage floor can be taken up by a water area. A 10-gallon plastic pan
filtered by a small aquarium-type canister filter works well. Filtering
the water saves a substantial amount of time which would otherwise be
spent dumping slimy, stagnant water from the pan every few days. The
filter should be placed outside the enclosur, and, since these snakes
frequently defecate in the water, this set-up minimizes the times that one
must enter the cage.
Captive dendrophila will often ignore fish; however, feeder goldfish
can be placed in the water, and frogs (readily eaten by some captives) can
be added several times a month. If the snakeąs space and climbing
requirements are met, and the enclosure includes a well-planned water
area, the snake should thrive and the terrarium will require minimal
maintenance.
GREEN CAT SNAKE
B. cyanea is uniformly green above (sometimes with a darker green
pattern) and yellowish cream below; the area below the chin is sometimes
bluish. This arboreal snake is fairly widespread in Thailand, and probably
occurs in most provinces, although some older reports indicate that it is
unknown in the south. It is often confused with another common rear-fanged
snake, the Longnose Whipsnake, Ahaetulla nasuta, due to color, shape and
habitat similarities. A. nasuta, however, has a sharply pointed head and a
pupil shaped like a horizontal figure eight, while B. cyanea has a
well-set-off, typically Boiga-shaped head with large cat-like eyes. Both
snakes have very long, thin, whip-like bodies (up to six feet in the case
of B. cyanea and female A. nasuta) and can be found in forests and near
human habitation.
As with B. dendrophila, B. cyanea spends most of its time above
ground and requires a tall, well-planted enclosure with plenty of branches
for climbing. It does not require such a large water area as dendrophila,
and it is more forgiving in regard to temperature and humidity
requirements--although the temperature should not drop below 75°F or rise
above 87°F, and humidity should not drop below 80%.
The catch with cyanea is that it eats snakes almost exclusively
(including venomous species), and prey imprinting is often strong with
this serpent. If a ready supply of inexpensive snakes is available to the
keeper, this does not present a problem. The trick of rubbing another prey
item on the snakeąs preferred prey can be tried. This works with some
other food specialists; but, in the case of ophiophagous creatures (which
specialize in eating snakes), not enough sensory requirements seem to be
met and the attempt is often futile (try rubbing a pizza against a spinach
salad and feeding it to a native New Yorker!).
B. cyanea is not nearly as aggressive as B. dendrophila; however,
all precautions mentioned above should be strictly followed.
OTHER BOIGA SPECIES
Other species of Boiga found in Thailand include the Marble Cat
Snake, B. mutomaculata, the smallest of the Thai Boiga (about three feet),
and the Dog-tooth Cat Snake, B. cynodon (another food specialist that eats
birds). B. nigriceps, B. draspiezii, and B. jaspidea all enter Thailand
from the south, but they are not common, and their presence is disputed by
some experts.
The Boiga are an extremely interesting and diverse group of snakes
which would benefit greatly from further study and observation from
professional herpetologists as well as the advanced home hobbyist who is
able to provide a proper captive environment for these snakes to live and,
hopefully, even breed.
RECOGNIZED Boiga--MANGROVE SNAKES
B. angulata Peters, 1861......................Leyte Cat Snake
B. barnesi Gunther, 1869....................Barnesą Cat Snake
B. blandingii Hallowell, 1844............Blandingąs Cat Snake
B. ceylonensis Gunther, 1858..............Sri Lanka Cat Snake
B. cyanea Dumeril, Bibron, & Dumeril, 1854....Green Cat Snake*
B. cynodon Boie, 1827.....................Dog-tooth Cat Snake*
B. dendrophila Boie, 1827......................Mangrove Snake*
B. dightoni Boulenger, 1894..................Pirmad Cat Snake
B. drapiezii Boie, 1827...............White-spotted Cat Snake*
B. flavescens Dumeril & Bibron, 1854.........Yellow Cat Snake
B. forsteni Dumeril, Bibron, & Dumeril, 1854..Forstenąs Cat Snake
B. gokool Gray, 1834.....................Arrowback Tree Snake
B. hexagonata Blyth, 1861.....................Gray Tree Snake
B. irregularis Merrem, 1802..................Brown Tree Snake
B. jaspidea Dumeril, Bibron, & Dumeril, 1854.Jasper Cat Snake*
B. kraepelini Stejneger, 1902................Kelung Cat Snake
B. multifasciata Blyth, 1861...........Many-banded Tree Snake
B. multomaculata Boie, 1827..................Marble Cat Snake*
B. nigriceps Gunther, 1863......................Red Cat Snake*
B. ocellata Kroon, 1973........................Gray Cat Snake*
B. philippina Peters, 1867...............Philippine Cat Snake
B. pulverulenta Fischer, 1856.............Fischerąs Cat Snake
B. trigonata Schneider, 1802...............Indian Gamma Snake
from A Complete Guide to Scientific and Common Names of Reptiles and
Amphibians of the World, by Norman Frank & Erica Ramus, NG Publishing,
Inc., I995
--* indicates Thai species
Erica Ramus
Editor/Publisher
Reptile & Amphibian Magazine
RD #3 Box 3709-A
Pottsville, PA 17901
717-622-6050, fax 622-5858
ERa...@postoffice.ptd.net
http://petstation.com/repamp.html
REAR FANG
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