Boa Constrictor - Common Names

Common Names

Though all boids are constrictors, only this species is properly referred to as "Boa constrictor"; a rare instance of an animal having the same common and scientific binomial name. (The distinction is shared with Tyrannosaurus rex.)

All subspecies are referred to as "Boa constrictors", while the nominate subspecies, B. c. constrictor, is often referred to specifically as the "red-tailed boa". Within the exotic pet trade it is also known as a "BCC", an abbreviation of its scientific name, to distinguish it from other Boa constrictor subspecies such as the Boa constrictor imperator which is also regularly, and erroneously, referred to as a "red-tailed boa" or "common boa".

Other common names include "chij-chan" (Mayan), "jibóia" (Latin American) and "macajuel" (Trinidadian).

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