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Boa Python

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32 views

Boa Python

Uploaded by

aujsioqeioquwe
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Name: Ahmed

Is That a Boa or a Python?


by Guy Belleranti

When people think of snakes, boas and


pythons are two species that often come to
mind. They're alike in so many ways that
many people can't tell which is which.
Both types of snake use their forked
tongues to smell. Those that hunt at night
can widen the pupils of their eyes to let in
more light. They also use heat sensors on
their lips to find warm-bodied prey such as Red-Tailed Boa Constrictor
rodents.
When a boa or python captures prey, it wraps its muscular coils
around it, and constricts, or squeezes. This shuts off the prey's breathing.
The snake then opens its mouth wide and swallows the prey head first.
Muscle contractions in the snake move the food along as the snake
digests.
Some boas and pythons look so similar only a reptile expert, or
herpetologist, can tell them apart. One example of this is the emerald tree
boa and the green tree python.
So, how are boas and pythons different?

First, a boa's skull bones aren't arranged the same as a python's.


Pythons have more bones in their skull, and more teeth too.
Second, boa young hatch inside their mother and are born live.
This is unusual because most other reptiles hatch from eggs. Pythons,
on the other hand, do lay eggs. The mother python builds a shallow nest
made of leaves
and soil. She coils around her eggs and
keeps them warm and protected. When
it is time for them to hatch, the mother
python leaves and the babies must
survive on their own without her help.
One other difference between boas
Burmese
Python and pythons is where each type of snake
lives. Most boas are native to the Americas. Most pythons are native to
Africa, Asia, Australia.

About the Author


Guy Belleranti is an author of fiction, poetry, articles, puzzles,
and humor for children and adults. He also works as a docent at
the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, Arizona. The information in this
article comes from his experiences teaching children about the
wild animals at the zoo.
Name: Ahmed

Is That a Boa or a Python?


by Guy Belleranti

1. Which sentence best describes the organization of the article?


a. The author lists facts about boas and pythons in sequential order.
b. The author describes differences between boas and pythons,
then describes similarities.
c. The author lists facts about boas and pythons in order of
importance.
d. The author describes how boas and pythons are alike,
then describes how they are different.

2. How do boas and pythons kill their prey?

When a boa or python captures prey, it wraps its muscular coils


around it, and constricts, or squeezes. This shuts off the prey's breathing. The
snake then opens its mouth wide and swallows the prey head first.

3. A hiker is walking through the grassland in Africa and he


encounters a large snake protecting its eggs. Is it probably a boa
or python? Explain how you know.
It’s a python because python born from eggs and boa don’t hatch from eggs.

4. What is a herpetologist?
Herpetologists conduct research on reptilian and amphibian species such as frogs, toads,
salamanders, newts, snakes, turtles, terrapins, crocodiles, alligators, and lizards.
Name: Ahmed

Is That a Boa or a Python?


Use information from the article to complete the Venn diagram.

Pythons
___
pythons are two species that often
come to mind. They're alike in so many
ways that many people can't tell which
is which.

Boas

boa's skull bones aren't arranged the same as a python's. Pythons have
more bones in their skull, and more teeth too.
Second, boa young hatch inside their mother and are born live. This is unusual because most
other reptiles hatch from eggs

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