Corallus caninus Nederland - website dedicated to the Emerald Tree Boa of South America

Behavioural aspects
This species is primarily a tree-dweller [arboreal] and will need an enclosure with plenty of branches and foliage to hide beneath and behind. It hunts after dark so this is the time when prey should be offered. It will cling with its prehensile tail from a branch whilst it waits for its prey to pass by. Treeboas are very quick to strike and use their long front fangs to firmly grasp the prey. This is a characteristic found in most arboreal snakes, including Corallus caninus [emerald tree boa] and Morelia viridis [the green tree python].

Due to its rather nervous nature, handling after dark should be avoided, if it is handled at all [handling should be restricted to times when enclosures are cleaned out or when cycling the animals for pairings]. If handled without due care, these boas will bite [defensively] and excrete a pungent smelling substance from their cloaca when handled. Males are particularly renowned for this behaviour.

Bites
Bites are not serious unless you are dealing with a fully grown adult. The bites inflicted by this species are purely defensive and they will almost certainly retract before digging in their teeth deep into the flesh as is often the case with Corallus caninus. When bites occur you should never retract quickly as this can damage the snake and also cause more serious lacerations or wounds to yourself as a keeper. If you are bitten, the best thing to do is to allow the snake to bite and release and then disinfect the wound with acohol or iodine and leave it unbandaged so that it will heal quicker.

Bites generally only result in small puncture wounds to the skin [see photo on the left] and are not serious. If in doubt about handling, use a snake stick to remove the snakes from the enclosure when needed or use removable branches if the snake is perched on the branch you remove the snake as you remove the branch].

Feeding sessions vs. defacation
Treeboas take easily to freshly killed or live prey. To keep the snake fit and alert it's best to feed live prey or at least alternate dead and live prey. Treeboas have a relatively fast metabolism: they will defacate only a few days after feeding. This is quite different in Corallus caninus which takes a lot longer to process its food and then defacate. It is good practice to allow the treeboa to rest a few days after defacation before the next feed. Plenty of fresh water should be provided at each feeding session so that the snake's intake of fluids facilitates defacation and prevents obstipation.

Aggressive nature
This species is not as aggressive as is often described. If it bites, it is only natural behaviour and intended as a warning [defensive]. Any bites from a hortulanus are quick and nippy and not serious [as in C. caninus that will often maintain a tight grip with its teeth and can inflict a severe injury]. Bites generally result from handling the snakes when they don't want to be. This species should never be handled after dark.