Indeed, we've had more than 100 encounters with boas since we started Windsor and, more generally, Cockpit Country, is one of the few remaining strongholds for this vulnerable snake, and we are certainly pleased with ourĬommunity's change in attitude from the previous decade. The boa also is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): it is on Appendix I, Jamaican legislation which protects the boa:Įndangered Species (Protection, Conservation and Regulation of Trade) Act (2000) We often ask the "obnoxious young man" at the back of the crowd to help us hold the snake - sexism is great, if Susan can touch a snake, the young man has to defend his manhood! We spend a lot of time talking about the benefits of boas.Īs Miss Herma says, "She never love de suh-nake like Miss Susan, but she keep her cutlass down now when she see one: him no trouble her." their jaws, if you don't know what you are doing!) This gives us the opportunity to show people that boas are gentle when they are handled safely and respectfully (NOTE: remember, don't catch them unless you have a permitĪnd have been shown how to properly hold a snake - you can hurt them, esp. So we began an informal education campaign, where if someone finds aīoa they could come and tell us and we will capture the animal. The Bible told them snakes were evil, and they had no knowledge that boas could be beneficial to their farm crops. We realized people were killing snakes for a number of reasons, including a mis-informed fear that boas were venomous, Indeed, Susan and her crew periodically encountered chopped boa carcasses in the forest. Local farmers, however, were not so keen and immediately offered to continue killing all boas. Nature is in balance in the interior of Cockpit Country and we respect all components of the web of life. Or to look at the other side of the coin: parrots are a food resource for boas when nests are accessible (Koenig, Wunderle & Enkerlin-Hoeflich 2007).īut remember the third paragraph above: rats are the major component of the boas' diet so we need not worry about the birds. This intense persecution of such a benign and beneficial animal, coupled with continuing habitat loss and fragmentation of remnant forest patches, is a serious threat to Jamaican Boa populations.ĭuring her research on the breeding biology of Black-billed Parrots, Susan identified that boas were a major cause of nest failure (Koenig 2001). And when we say "killed," we mean but good: chop it with a machete, drive over it with a truck and then back-up to squash it a second time, pour rum over it and set it ablaze. In the absence of an education programme, snakes are killed on sight. Is a serious problem for their conservation. The traditional Jamaican antipathy to reptiles (in general) and snakes (in particular) Unfortunately, most Jamaicans are not as thrilled with the idea of having a wild boa living in their house. If you are lucky enough to have a wild boa take up temporary residence in your house, as we are periodically, you will find that your rat problem magically goes away. Of the boa's diet in forest edge and farm habitat, so when a farmer finds one coiled in a coffee tree or banana plant, it's digesting a meal which would have otherwise damaged his or her crops. Not only is the boa not a threat to humans, it's actually extraordinarily beneficial. Indeed, none of Jamaica's 7 extant species of snakes is venomous. What are we really saying? The Jamaican Boa is NOT venomous! Predator and, as with all species in the Boidae family, it kills its prey by constriction. It is the island's largest native terrestrial The Jamaican (Yellow) Boa is endemic to Jamaica - it occurs nowhere else in the world. 'im nah trouble you, 'im just wan' eat de rats dem inna de coffee tree. If you see a boa in the wild, respect this endemic animal and leave it alone: Illegal possession of a Jamaican Boa can result in a maximum fine of JD 100,000 or one year in jail. The handling you read about on this page was done under permits from NEPA. The Jamaican Boa is protected by Jamaica's Wild Life Protection Act, 1945. disease-causing pathogens they can harbour) The IUCN Redlist status of the Jamaican Boa is "Vulnerable" because of: Trelawny Local Sustainable Development Plan.
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