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  1. #1
    BPnet Senior Member artgecko's Avatar
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    A question about size and temperament differences (Morph BCI / BCA)

    Hello all,
    I'm back with yet another boa question... I was looking on another boa-specific forum and the folks there suggested that I consider looking into male morph BCIs and also BCAs as an alternative to just looking at the smaller locality boas (tarahumara, hog island, etc.).

    I know that BCIs have a huge range in size, but is there a general rule of thumb with morphs (i.e. they tend to be smaller, larger, etc. than your standard BCI)? Since staying smaller (pref. male 6' or less) is important to me, what would I need to ask the breeder to determine how big a baby might get (i.e. should I ask what local the morphs are based in, what length / how old the parents are, etc.)?

    Also, if you have any feedback on temperament / size of BCAs vs. BCIs, that would be great too... I have heard that they are more relaxed and generally stay smaller (under 6'), but I would welcome any additional information you could give me. I know they don't have a range of morphs like BCIs, but the ones I've seen pics of look great, and if they really are more "laid back" that would appeal to me as well.

    Thank you, as always, for your time and sharing your advice!

  2. #2
    BPnet Royalty Gio's Avatar
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    Hi there,

    Those are some good questions, and let me start by saying "IN GENERAL" almost all BCI's have a nice docile temperament. Notice the "in general" part. You will have some that have an edge and some that are docile 99% of the time and have a bad day just like we do. If the snake is not being defensive and showing a threat display, any other type of bite is an accidental feeding response where you made the mistake.

    Boas make great pets because they are pretty even tempered and yet are still curious and active. They are completely different from Royal pythons, yet maintain a decent level of predictability once you learn/know your snake.

    As for the size of morphs; Well, that is a loaded question. There are so many you can't possibly categorize a general size for them. They have influences from smaller Central American boas in them, some morphs, though not many have BCC in them. Obviously the CA influenced boas would be the smaller morphs but there are also huge albino BCI's.

    All of that said, you will be just fine with a male Colombian BCI. Anything over 6 feet is quite rare for a properly raised male BCI.

    Here is a tidbit of info. Kali, (Evenstar) helped me get into the boa scene, she is a great resource and also has a load of morphs and common BCI's. When speaking with her, she recommended I get a male BCI, but quickly told me, the snake grows with you when you get a young one, meaning you don't suddenly feel like you have a huge animal when it's larger because you get used to it as it grows.

    After getting my male, I sometimes wish I'd have gotten a female because I love the size of the bigger boas. You can certainly assist a male into a larger size safely, if you are never going to breed it and it is not ever around female boas to react to scents and signals for breeding, but it will not attain the size of a female in most cases.

    Safe bet for the male BCI 5-6 feet. 7 feet would be huge, and the girth is normally less than the female. Sexual dimorphism is pretty common.

    I don't have a lot of experience with BCA's but the info I have from the Vincent Russo book, states they are usually shorter, but are thicker in girth. The BCA's are sometimes referred to a short tailed boas. They are becoming a bit more mainstream now and seem to "keep" easily from the reading I've done.

    Boas are fantastic snakes and you will enjoy one. Just make sure you have the proper setup and EVERYTHING, caging, thermostat, heat source, and vet care taken care of and researched before you buy. Use a trusted breeder, ask about the genetics and background of the parents. Follow the breeder's advice and you'll be good to go.

    This photo is a little older, but here is a male Barranquilla, Colombian BCI.

    He is currently 4' 7" and 20 months old. He may hit 5 feet a little after he is 2 years, but his growth has slowed for the season, and his girth is not much. He is lean. Even at his current size I can easily handle him in 1 hand.


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  4. #3
    BPnet Senior Member artgecko's Avatar
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    Gio- Thank you so much for your advice and the great pic! Your boa is gorgeous, I love the colors and good pattern contrast.

    - Based on your advice, I will look for morphs that list ca / Colombian parentage and watch out for those containing BCC in their background.

    Are there specific morphs that always contain BCC (i.e. a certain line or pattern morph developed with them)?

    I will look for the vin russo book you mentioned. I have heard others talk about it, so it must be a good resource to have on hand.

    thanks again for your help!

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  6. #4
    BPnet Royalty Gio's Avatar
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    Re: A question about size and temperament differences (Morph BCI / BCA)

    Quote Originally Posted by artgecko View Post
    Gio- Thank you so much for your advice and the great pic! Your boa is gorgeous, I love the colors and good pattern contrast.

    - Based on your advice, I will look for morphs that list ca / Colombian parentage and watch out for those containing BCC in their background.

    Are there specific morphs that always contain BCC (i.e. a certain line or pattern morph developed with them)?

    I will look for the vin russo book you mentioned. I have heard others talk about it, so it must be a good resource to have on hand.

    thanks again for your help!
    THE COMPLETE BOA CONSTRICTOR.

    That's the book. You will not find many BCC morphs. Most BCC breeders are are purists and won't cross into anything but the same locality.

    If you are set on morphs, check with Kali, she has all kinds and knows a lot about them. There are also non-morph localities. Mexican boas, the island boas, Nicaraguan boas, boas from Panama all are typically smaller than the "common" Colombian BCI.

    Note, some of the smaller boas will actually be smaller girth/wise than a full grown ball python and not a lot longer. Keep that in mind if you want something a little larger.

    I'd highly recommend going to see some boas if you can. Hold some adults and some younger snakes.

    I remember the first time I held a boa and the nervous feeling I had. I was used to our royal python wanting to go toward the floor and away from me. The boa was wrapping my arm tightly and heading up toward my head and face to say hello. It's funny to think I was sweating and expecting to get tagged LOL!

    I think unless you are set on a morph and some particular pattern, you'd do just fine with a Colombian BCI male.

    Check out Perfect Predators web page. I know Kali has a few cool morphs from them.

    Don't worry much about any morph with BCC in it. It's very uncommon and breeders make it a point of telling you there is BCC involved if there is any. At least honest ones do.

    Thanks for the nice comments on the snake.

    I don't have any recent pictures, but Colombian boas are quite pretty IMO.


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  8. #5
    BPnet Senior Member Evenstar's Avatar
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    Well said, Gio!! Well said indeed. You've learned a LOT!! lol....


    I really don't know what else I can add at this point. Gio has put you on the right path. "The Complete Boa Constrictor" is a fabulous resource, but it is not easy to find. It is still available off Vin's website though. http://www.cuttingedgeherp.com/books.html Keep in mind, it's expensive. But it is WELL worth it!!


    Here's a pic of my own Sao Paulo BCA from Vin....

    Last edited by Evenstar; 02-07-2014 at 10:21 PM.
    ~ Kali
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  10. #6
    BPnet Royalty Gio's Avatar
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    Re: A question about size and temperament differences (Morph BCI / BCA)

    Quote Originally Posted by Evenstar View Post
    Well said, Gio!! Well said indeed. You've learned a LOT!! lol....


    I really don't know what else I can add at this point. Gio has put you on the right path. "The Complete Boa Constrictor" is a fabulous resource, but it is not easy to find. It is still available off Vin's website though. http://www.cuttingedgeherp.com/books.html Keep in mind, it's expensive. But it is WELL worth it!!


    Here's a pic of my own Sao Paulo BCA from Vin....

    Wow that does not look like that short of a tail at all LOL! Are their tails that much shorter or is that a myth? What a beauty!!

    They have the coolest heads. Great, powerful shape!

    Go BCA!!!
    Last edited by Gio; 02-08-2014 at 12:02 AM.

  11. #7
    BPnet Senior Member Evenstar's Avatar
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    Re: A question about size and temperament differences (Morph BCI / BCA)

    Quote Originally Posted by Gio View Post
    Wow that does not look like that short of a tail at all LOL! Are their tails that much shorter or is that a myth? What a beauty!!

    They have the coolest heads. Great, powerful shape!

    Go BCA!!!
    Technically speaking, their tails are shorter than the common boas' by, oh say, 2 scales or something trivial like that. Hence the name "short-tailed" boas. They aren't really known by that so much anymore though. I think some do look like they have short tails because the saddle pattern doesn't carry up the tail like on other boas. Basically, they have the red and white banding right at the end, but it stops there. The body saddle pattern goes all the way to the cloaca and sometimes beyond instead of the other way around. Just my opinion though.

    I really like this guy and I can't wait to pick up a female from Vin this year. I hope he goes back to Tinley in October. He's got some really nice stuff, including some Barranquilla!
    ~ Kali
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  13. #8
    BPnet Senior Member artgecko's Avatar
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    Beautiful snake evenstar! I saw the book on Amazon.. I think used it is about $50.

    I am really leaning towards a BCA or a non-albino / non- motley BCI. I really love the intensity of colors and clear patterns on normal BCIs, but I also like the "peaked" / jagged pattern on the BCAs a breeder posted pics of. So hard to decide.

    My main issue now, is deciding if I want to buy from the breeder with just a few BCA babies at the moment, or wait until he has BCI babies in the summer, or look for animals from a different breeder altogether.

    One more question for you guys with BCI / BCA experience. Can you tell how light the background / good the contrast is when the boa is a baby? Is "what you see what you get" in terms of color range / pattern even in babies? Gi0- what I love most about your boa is the range of different browns / oranges in his pattern and the black / dark edging. Was the pattern this way when he was small?

    Thank you again for your input!

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  15. #9
    BPnet Royalty Gio's Avatar
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    Re: A question about size and temperament differences (Morph BCI / BCA)

    Quote Originally Posted by artgecko View Post
    Beautiful snake evenstar! I saw the book on Amazon.. I think used it is about $50.

    I am really leaning towards a BCA or a non-albino / non- motley BCI. I really love the intensity of colors and clear patterns on normal BCIs, but I also like the "peaked" / jagged pattern on the BCAs a breeder posted pics of. So hard to decide.

    My main issue now, is deciding if I want to buy from the breeder with just a few BCA babies at the moment, or wait until he has BCI babies in the summer, or look for animals from a different breeder altogether.

    One more question for you guys with BCI / BCA experience. Can you tell how light the background / good the contrast is when the boa is a baby? Is "what you see what you get" in terms of color range / pattern even in babies? Gi0- what I love most about your boa is the range of different browns / oranges in his pattern and the black / dark edging. Was the pattern this way when he was small?

    Thank you again for your input!
    This is a younger pic.



    The tail on BCI's is usually more red when they are young. They are not true red tails, but this particular locality is what Vin Russo says is an example of what the perfect cross between a BCI and a BCC would look like. The Barranquilla boa scale counts are different from other Colombian BCI's, according to the book.

    You can get a boa like this from Legacy Reptiles. They have a lot of the Rio Bravo Reptiles stock. Gus Rentfro of Rio Bravo IS the authority on BC's. In simple terms he is a boa GOD!

    This is a picture that was maybe 2 months ago. You can see the colors hold. Maybe even better but the tail does go more orange/brown.



    You should visit the Legacy Reptiles Facebook page and see what they have.

    They do localities mostly, but also have morphs. They are top notch and one of the owners, Orlando, is a veterinarian that specializes in avian care.

    Male BCI will be perfect for you.

  16. #10
    BPnet Senior Member Evenstar's Avatar
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    I highly recommend going through a reputable breeder whether you choose a BCA or BCI, but especially for a BCA. Amarali are harder to find and you'll want a pure locality. It is much easier to find a nice BCI, but well worth the trouble for a quality BCA.

    The babies look different from adults. What you see is not generally what you'll get in an adult. Baby colors are usually much brighter with more contrast than adults. You've seen the pic of my Sao Paulo baby above. Here are pics of his parents....




    You can see how much darker they are from my baby. My baby still has a silver overtone and his tail saddles are still dark red. The silver changes to a more pewter/charcoal color and the red gives way to a more black appearance. This is typical of BCA. And the Sao Paulo are a particularly dark locality. The South Brazilians and Bolivians are lighter as adults.

    Colombian BCI colors usually behave similarly, however, since they are generally lighter and more colorful than BCA, the adults are usually a bit more colorful too:

    This is a baby normal Cherry Pastel BCI


    This is her father, an adult male normal Cherry Pastel BCI


    And, while I don't have a baby pic to compare with her, here is my adult female het leopard. You can see how colorful she still is.


    It's important to note that these BCI pictured are morphs. They are not "normal wild type". The Cherry Pastel gene and the leopard gene affect color and pattern even in an otherwise "normal" BCI. But I think you should be able to see my point.

    ** What breeder were you considering for a BCA?? In my personal opinion, the only 2 I would work with (for BCA) are Vin Russo and Legacy Reptiles.....
    ~ Kali
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