Boa

boa (bō`ə), name for live-bearing constrictor snakes of the family Boidae, found mostly in the Americas. This family, which also comprises the egg-laying pythons of the Old World, includes the largest of all snakes, as well as many smaller ones. Members of the boa family have two functional lungs instead of one, as is found in other snakes, and vestiges of hind limbs; these primitive characteristics are indicative of their relationship to lizards. Each of the two tiny, internal leg bones ends in an external horny claw; the claws are much more prominent in males than in females. Boas capture their prey by striking with their teeth and simultaneously throwing their bodies in a coil around the victim. They then squeeze the animal so that, unable to expand its rib cage, it suffocates. Like other snakes, boas swallow the prey whole. Over 30 boa species are found from Mexico to South America, with the greatest variey in the tropics, and two in the United States. Boas may be terrestrial, arboreal, or burrowing. Some are brightly colored, like the green and white emerald tree boa of the tropics (Boa canina), or iridescent, like the wide-ranging rainbow boa (Epicrates cenchris). Best known is the boa constrictor (Constrictor constrictor), which lives in a variety of terrestrial habitats from S Mexico to central Argentina. It averages 6 to 9 ft (1.8–2.7 m) in length, occasionally reaching 14 ft (4.3 m), and has dark brown diamond markings on a lighter background. The South American anaconda (Eunectes murinus) is a semiaquatic boa that inhabits swamps and river shallows, catching animals that come to drink. The longest member of the boa family and the thickest of all snakes, it may reach 25 ft (7.9 m) in length and 3 ft (90 cm) in girth. The rubber boa (Charina bottae) is found in moist regions of the far W United States and extreme SW Canada. It is a burrower, about 18 in. (46 cm) long, with a narrow, blunt head, broad, blunt tail, and silver-green skin. It feeds chiefly on lizards and rodents. The rosy boa (Lichanura roseofusca) is found in chaparral in the SW United States and N Mexico; it grows about 3 ft (90 cm) long. It has large, dark brown spots on a lighter background. Several species of sand boa (Eryx) are distributed from India and central Asia to N Africa and SE Europe; all are burrowers in sand. There are also several boa species on Madagascar and several on Pacific islands. Boas are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Reptilia, order Squamata, family Boidae.

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boa

Any of about 60 species of stout-bodied snakes (subfamily Boinae, family Boidae) found in both the Old and New Worlds, mostly in warm regions. Species vary in length from about 8 in. (20 cm) to more than 25 ft (7.5 m). Most are terrestrial or semiaquatic; some live in trees. Most species have blotches and diamonds on their brown, green, or yellowish body. Boas bite their prey, then kill by wrapping their body around the prey and crushing it. Several species have heat-sensitive lip pits for detecting warm-blooded prey, and most bear live young. Contrary to folklore, boas are not dangerous to humans.

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boa

any large nonvenomous snake of the family Boidae, most of which occur in Central and South America and the Caribbean. They have vestigial hind limbs and kill their prey by constriction

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boa [′bō·ə]

(vertebrate zoology)

Any large, nonvenomous snake of the family Boidae in the order Squamata.

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1.		BOA - Basic Object Adapter
2.		boa - [IBM] Any one of the fat cables that lurk under the floor in a dinosaur pen. Possibly so called because they display a ferocious life of their own when you try to lay them straight and flat after they have been coiled for some time. It is rumored within IBM that channel cables for the 370 are limited to 200 feet because beyond that length the boas get dangerous --- and it is worth noting that one of the major cable makers uses the trademark "Anaconda".

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Boa 

the common boa constrictor (Constrictor constrictor), a snake of the constrictor family. The boa measures up to four m long. The color of its scales is very beautiful and variable, with a metallic sheen. The boa is distributed in tropical America, where it lives in forests, on the ground, and in trees. It feeds on small birds and animals, hunting them mostly at night. Like all constrictors, the boa crushes its prey with loops of its body. The skin of the boa is highly prized for its beautiful pattern. (It goes into the manufacture of handbags, briefcases, and other goods.)