The Dumeril's boa (Acrantophis dumerili) is a nonvenomous boa species found on Madagascar. It is named in honor of French herpetologist André Marie Constant Duméril.
Dumeril's boas have a gray-brown ground color with darker patches, which form an effective camouflage against the leaf litter of the forest floor of their native habitat. Males usually have longer skinnier tails, while females tend to be larger overall.
Dumeri's boas are found along the western coast and southwestern regions of Madagascar, where they live in a semi-arid habitat that gets fairly low amounts of precipitation. Dumeril's boas inhabit dry forests, grassland in highlands, agricultural areas, and villages.
Dumeril's boas are mainly terrestrial creatures that live and hunt on the ground. Adults are active both during the day and night (cathemeral) but younger individuals are typically nocturnal. Dumeril's boas prefer to spend time on their own and interact with each other only during the mating season.
Dumeril's boas are carnivores and eat small animals, such as birds, lizards, and small mammals, including juvenile lemurs. They can also prey on other snakes.
Dumeril's boas breed in March through May, and the young are born 6-8 months later. Females are ovoviviparous and give birth to 6-28 live young. Neonates are 12-18 inches (30-46 cm) long and become reproductively mature when they are between 3 and 5 years old.
This species is threatened by deforestation and human persecution. In some areas, it is feared and often killed on sight.
According to the IUCN Red List, the Dumeril's boa is locally common throughout its range but no overall population estimate is available. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are stable.
