Published February 11, 2024. Open access. | Purchase book ❯ |
Bates’ Emerald Tree-Boa (Corallus batesii)
Reptiles of Ecuador | Serpentes | Boidae | Corallus batesii
English common names: Bates’ Emerald Tree-Boa, Amazon Basin Emerald Tree-Boa.
Spanish common name: Boa esmeralda.
Recognition: ♂♂ 117.5 cmMaximum distance from the snout to the tip of the tail. ♀♀ 194.5 cmMaximum distance from the snout to the tip of the tail..1,2 Corallus batesii differs from other boas by having a bright green dorsum (orange-red in juveniles) with white wedge-shaped markings, labial scales bearing pits, and a laterally compressed body (Fig. 1).1–3 This species differs from C. hortulana by having contrasting white dorsal marks (absent in C. hortulana). Also, the bright green coloration is unique to C. batesii.1,4
Figure 1: Individuals of Corallus batesii: Yasuní National Park, Orellana province, Ecuador (); Tambopata Research Center, Madre de Dios department, Perú (). j=juvenile.
Natural history: Corallus batesii is a rarely seen boa that inhabits the upper canopy of pristine lowland rainforests, both in terra-firme and seasonally flooded areas.1,2,5 Although the species is considered a canopy specialist, this boa is not restricted to the crown of large trees; it can also be found on small trees and saplings.6,7 Occasionally, particularly after torrential rains, individuals are knocked to the ground and may be found at or near the ground level.1,6 These boas are strictly nocturnal8 and spend the night foraging or waiting in ambush.1,2 Throughout the day, they remain coiled on logs or resting on vegetation.1,2,5 Bates’ Emerald Tree-Boas are ambush predators.2,9 Their diet consists primarily of mammals, including rodents, opossums, and bats.2–10 They also consume birds,11,12 lizards (Thecadactylus solimoensis),13 and other snakes (including Bothrops atrox).10 When threatened, individuals of C. batesii usually make an S-coil and strike.14 When manipulated, they can adopt a “protective ball posture.”7 There are recorded instances of predation on members of this species, including by hawks7 and caimans (Paleosuchus trigonatus).7 This species is viviparous. Females “give birth” (the eggs hatch within the mother) to 7–10 young.1,2,5
Conservation: Least Concern Believed to be safe from extinction given current circumstances..15 Corallus batesii is listed in this category because the species has large, stable populations and a wide distribution that includes numerous protected areas.15 Unfortunately, this strictly arboreal boid is destined to disappear in some areas due to the destruction of the Amazonian landscape. Additional threats include traffic mortality5 and poaching for the international trade of exotic wildlife.16
Distribution: Corallus batesii is widely distributed throughout the Amazon rainforest south of the Río Amazonas and west of the Río Negro, occurring in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador (Fig. 2), and Peru. Curiously, the species also occurs west of the Andes along the valleys of the rivers Magdalena and Cauca in Colombia.
Figure 2: Distribution of Corallus batesii in Ecuador. See Appendix 1 for a complete list of the presence localities included in the map.
Etymology: The generic name Corallus comes from the old French word coral, which was the name given to dangerous savage and barbaric peoples in ancient times.17,18 This term refers to the fierce and perfidious appearance of tree boas, among which the anterior teeth of the maxilla and mandible stand out.18 The specific epithet batesii honors British naturalist Henry Walter Bates (1825–1892), who spent 11 years in Brazilian Amazonia collecting and studying its flora and fauna.3
See it in the wild: In Ecuador, individuals of Corallus batesii are recorded no more than once every few years at any given locality. The area having the greatest number of recent observations is Jatun Sacha Biological Reserve and its neighboring forests.
Special thanks to Hillary Goldberg and Eridani Mulder for symbolically adopting the Bates’ Emerald Tree-Boa and helping bring the Reptiles of Ecuador book project to life.
Click here to adopt a species.
Authors: Danna Duque-Torres,aAffiliation: Grupo de Ornitología, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia. Andrés F. Aponte-Gutiérrez,bAffiliation: Grupo de Investigación en Ciencias de la Orinoquía, Universidad Nacional de Colombia sede Orinoquía, Arauca, Colombia.,cAffiliation: Fundación Biodiversa Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia. and Tatiana Molina-MorenodAffiliation: Departamento de Biología, Universidad de los Llanos, Villavicencio, Colombia.
Editor: Alejandro ArteagaeAffiliation: Tropical Herping (TH), Quito, Ecuador.
Photographer: Jose VieirafAffiliation: Tropical Herping (TH), Quito, Ecuador.,gAffiliation: ExSitu, Quito, Ecuador.
How to cite? Duque-Torres D, Aponte-Gutiérrez A, Molina-Moreno T (2024) Bates’ Emerald Tree-Boa (Corallus batesii). In: Arteaga A, Bustamante L, Vieira J (Eds) Reptiles of Ecuador: Life in the middle of the world. Available from: www.reptilesofecuador.com. DOI: 10.47051/HTXZ2458
Literature cited:
- Duellman WE, Mendelson JR (1995) Amphibians and reptiles from northern departamento Loreto, Peru: taxonomy and biogeography. The University of Kansas Science Bulletin 55: 329–376. DOI: 10.5962/bhl.part.779
- Martins M, Oliveira ME (1998) Natural history of snakes in forests of the Manaus region, Central Amazonia, Brazil. Herpetological Natural History 6: 78–150.
- Henderson RW, Passos P, Feitosa D (2009) Geographic variation in the Emerald Treeboa, Corallus caninus (Squamata: Boidae). Copeia 3: 572–582. DOI: 10.1643/CH-08-190
- de Fraga R, Lima AP, da Costa Prudente AL, Magnusson WE (2013) Guia de cobras da região de Manaus - Amazônia Central. Editopa Inpa, Manaus, 303 pp.
- dos Santos-Costa MC, Maschio GF, da Costa Prudente AL (2015) Natural history of snakes from Floresta Nacional de Caxiuanã, eastern Amazonia, Brazil. Herpetology Notes 8: 69–98.
- Duellman WE (1978) The biology of an equatorial herpetofauna in Amazonian Ecuador. Publications of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas 65: 1–352.
- Field notes, Reptiles of Ecuador book project.
- Sethna JM (2021) Activity budget and spatial behavior of the Emerald Tree Boa Corallus batesii. BSc thesis, Atlanta, Georgia Institute of Technology, 16 pp.
- Henderson RW, Pauers MJ, Colston TJ (2013) On the congruence of morphology, trophic ecology, and phylogeny in Neotropical treeboas (Squamata: Boidae: Corallus). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 109: 466–475. DOI: 10.1111/bij.12052
- Henderson RW, Pauers MJ (2012) On the diets of Neotropical treeboas (Squamata: Boidae) Corallus. South American Journal of Herpetology 7: 172–180. DOI: 10.2994/057.007.0207
- Albuquerque CC, Travaglia-Cardoso SR (2024) First record of avian prey ingestion by the Amazon Basin Emerald Tree Boa Corallus batesii (Gray, 1860). Herpetology Notes: 13–15.
- Photo by Francisco Sornoza.
- Henderson RW (1993) On the diets of some arboreal boids. Herpetological Natural History 1: 91–96.
- Greene HW (1988) Anti predator mechanisms in reptiles. In: Gans C, Huey RB (Eds) Biology of the Reptilia. Liss, New York, 1–153.
- Rivas G, Gutiérrez-Cárdenas P, Caicedo J, Hoogmoed M, Gagliardi G, Cisneros-Heredia DF, Nogueira C, Gonzales L (2016) Corallus batesii. The IUCN Red List of threatened species. Available from: www.iucnredlist.org. DOI: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T203207A2762173.en
- Dixon JR, Soini P (1986) The reptiles of the upper Amazon Basin, Iquitos region, Peru. Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, 154 pp.
- Brown RW (1956) Composition of scientific words. Smithsonian Books, Washington D.C., 882 pp.
- Daudin FM (1803) Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière des reptiles. De l’Imprimerie de F. Dufart, Paris, 365 pp.
Appendix 1: Locality data used to create the distribution map of Corallus batesii in Ecuador (Fig. 2). Go to the section on symbols and abbreviations for a list of acronyms used.
| Country | Province | Locality | Source |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Camino Andaquí | Caicedo 2023 |
| Colombia | Caquetá | San Jose de Fragua | Ruiz-Valderrama 2023 |
| Colombia | Caquetá | San Juanito de los Cedros | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Macuma | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Tunants | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Napo | El Coca | MHNG 2250.048; collection database |
| Ecuador | Napo | Estación Biológica Jatun Sacha | Vigle 2008 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Primavera | MHNG 2398.005; collection database |
| Ecuador | Napo | Río Cotapino | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Río Napo | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Sinchi Sacha | Photo by Ernesto Arbeláez |
| Ecuador | Napo | Turismo Comunitario Shiripuno | Photo by Teo Rivadeneira |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Comunidad Kichwa Añangu | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Napo Wildlife Center | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Río Bigal | García et al. 2021 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Río Yasuní | Photo by Darwin Núñez |
| Ecuador | Orellana | San José de Payamino | Maynard et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Shiripuno Lodge | Photo by Jarold Vaca |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Tiputini Biodiversity Station | Cisneros-Heredia 2003 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Verde Sumaco, 4 km S of | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Arutam | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Balsaura | Ortega-Andrade 2010 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Canelos | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Conambo | Ortega-Andrade 2010 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Montalvo | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Pindoyacu | Ortega-Andrade 2010 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Río Bufeo | Ortega-Andrade 2010 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Río Conambo | USNM 204088; VertNet |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Río Tigre | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Bamboo Lodge | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Bermejo | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Dureno | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Kichwa Lodge | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Lago Agrio | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Limoncocha | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Misahuallí | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Reserva Ecológica Cofán Bermejo | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Sacha Lodge | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Sani Lodge | Reptiles of Ecuador book database |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Santa Cecilia | Duellman 1978 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Tarapoa, 5 km NE of | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Miazi | Reptiles of Ecuador book database |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Shaime | Photo by Darwin Núñez |
| Perú | Amazonas | Huampami | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Perú | Amazonas | Sua, vicinity of, on the Río Cenepa | USNM 316564; VertNet |
| Perú | Loreto | Campo Santa Clara | NMNH 127121; VertNet |
| Perú | Loreto | Caserío El Chino | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Perú | Loreto | Caserío El Chino, 1.5 km SW of | iNaturalist; photo examined |
| Perú | Loreto | Pongo de Maseriche | Henderson et al. 2009 |
| Perú | Loreto | Requena | Henderson et al. 2009 |