Boa - MSN Encarta
Boa - MSN Encarta Boa Boa , common name for nonpoisonous snakes of the boa family. Like all members of this group, boas are constrictors—that is, they kill their prey by squeezing it to death and then they swallow it whole. Boas use the coils of their body to suffocate their prey, rather than crushing it, as is commonly believed. They can stretch their jaws wide apart to swallow animals larger than their heads. Depending on the size of its prey, a boa may take several weeks or longer to digest its food. Many of the exceptionally large snakes of the world are of this family, but not all boas are large. Some are no more than 50 cm (20 in) long when fully grown. Boas vary greatly in color and pattern. The boa family is characterized by vestigial hipbones and hind legs, which can be seen externally as a pair of movable spurs. Boas and pythons are often confused, but they differ in several ways, primarily in the skeleton. Most boas give birth to live young, while pythons lay eggs. Boas ar