Snake family · Dwarf boas
Tropidophiidae
Small New-World boas that can bleed from the eyes when threatened.
About the Tropidophiidae family
Dwarf boas are small, harmless constrictors of the American tropics. Several have the startling defense of voluntarily bleeding from the mouth and eyes, alongside coiling into a ball and discharging musk.
- Where they live
- The West Indies, Central America, and northern South America.
- How to recognize one
- Small, stout-bodied snakes, often blotched, that coil tightly when handled.
- Danger to people
- Harmless. Non-venomous constrictors.
Species (25)
Ambergris Cay Dwarf BoaTropidophis greenwayiHarmless
Bahama Wood SnakeTropidophis canusHarmless
Banded Dwarf BoaTropidophis semicinctusHarmless
Brazilian Dwarf BoaTropidophis paucisquamisHarmless
Cayman Islands Dwarf BoaTropidophis caymanensisHarmless
Cuban Dwarf BoaTropidophis melanurusHarmless
Escambray White-necked TropeTropidophis galacelidusHarmless
Feick's Dwarf BoaTropidophis feickiHarmless
Ghost Dwarf BoaTropidophis spiritusHarmless
Guanahacabibes dwarf boaTropidophis xanthogasterHarmless
Haitian Dwarf BoaTropidophis haetianusHarmless
Jamaican Brown Dwarf BoaTropidophis jamaicensisHarmless
Jamaican Eyespot Dwarf BoaTropidophis stejnegeriHarmless
Little Cayman Dwarf BoaTropidophis parkeriHarmless
Northern Bahamas TropeTropidophis curtusHarmless
Northern Eyelash BoaTropidophis boulengeriHarmless
Schwartz’ Dwarf BoaTropidophis schwartziHarmless
Spotted Brown TropeTropidophis pardalisHarmless
Spotted Dwarf BoaTropidophis maculatusHarmless
Taczanowsky's Dwarf BoaTropidophis taczanowskyiHarmless
Tropidophis cacuangoaeHarmless
Tropidophis grapiunaHarmless
Tropidophis steinleiniHarmless
Wright's Dwarf BoaTropidophis wrightiHarmless- No photoTropidophis preciosusHarmless
Genera in the Tropidophiidae family
1 genera with two or more species. Open one to read about the group and browse all its snakes.
Keep learning
- What Is a Snake? Anatomy and the BasicsA clear overview of what makes a snake a snake: limbless body plan, anatomy, evolution from lizards, species diversity, and why they are ectothermic.
- How Snakes Move, Hunt, and EatHow snakes move without legs, hunt as ambushers or active foragers, kill by constriction or venom, and swallow prey wider than their head.
- What Do Snakes Eat?All snakes are carnivores. Learn what snakes eat, how diet changes with size and age, how often they feed, and how they hunt and swallow prey.
- Venomous vs Nonvenomous: How to Tell the DifferenceThe folk rules for telling venomous snakes apart, where each one fails, and why location-based identification beats guessing by sight.