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Jamaican boas are the largest terrestrial predator native to Jamaica and one of the top predators of their habitat. The color varies along the length of the snake with the head and front half yellowish green, going darker towards the tail. This coloring camouflages them among tree branches and vines as they stalk prey.
Nocturnal and arboreal, the snakes often hang from branches or outcrops near cave entrances where they can ambush and snatch bats from the air. They then suffocate the prey in the strong body coils which are thrown around it. Once the prey is dead it is swallowed whole, head first. They also eat mice, rats, and lizards and without the Jamaican boa, the island’s farming industry would be overrun.
During the day they are hidden away in the dense vegetation or tree holes, rock crevices or burrows occasionally coming out to bask in the sun.
