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Animal profile

Brazilian Rainbow Boa

Epicrates cenchria

ReptiliaHumid lowland forest, forest edge and open woodland near water

Field profile

The Brazilian rainbow boa is a medium-sized terrestrial boa marked with dark rings on a warm brown ground. Its common name comes from an intense iridescent sheen visible in direct light. It is nocturnal and gives birth to live young.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2023-05-03

Brazilian Rainbow Boa

The rainbow boa's colours are structure, not pigment

The shifting rainbow sheen across this snake's scales contains no coloured pigment at all. Microscopic ridges in the outer scale layer split white light into its components, so the colour changes with the angle of view.

Read with evidence →

Brazilian Rainbow Boa | Daily Animal Facts