Biodiversity and Conservation 8: 957–963, 1999.

© 1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Boa constrictor, an introduced predator threatening

the endemic fauna on Cozumel Island, Mexico

MIGUEL ANGEL MARTÍNEZ-MORALES1 and ALFREDO D. CUARÓN2,∗

Wildlife Research Group, Department of Anatomy, University of Cambridge, Downing Street,
Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK; 1 Present address: Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing
Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK; 2 Present address: Departamento de Ecología de los Recursos
Naturales, Instituto de Ecología UNAM, Antigua carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de
San José de la Huerta, Morelia, Michoacán 58190, Mexico; ∗ Author for correspondence (fax: 52 (43)
200830; e-mail: cuaron@oikos.unam.mx)

Received 11 July 1997; accepted in revised form 27 October 1998

Abstract. We present evidence indicating that the boa (Boa constrictor) was introduced onto Cozumel
Island, Quintana Roo, Mexico, in 1971. This snake is now firmly established and has a wide distribution
on Cozumel. We recorded an encounter rate of 1.8 boas per 100 km of forest surveyed. The introduction of
the boa onto Cozumel, where it has few predators, is a threat to the existence of endemic and other native
terrestrial vertebrates of the island. We recommend the following immediate actions: (1) undertake research
to confirm the origin of the boa on Cozumel; (2) assess the effect of the boa on the biota of Cozumel; and,
(3) if an anthropogenic origin is confirmed, an eradication programme for the boa on Cozumel should be
undertaken, obtaining information on the biology and ecology of the species. Options for the destiny of the
eradicated boas are discussed.

Key words: boa, Boa constrictor, Cozumel Island, conservation, insular fauna, introduced predator, in-
troduction, invasion, Mexico

Introduction

Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico, is a 486 km2 oceanic island of coralline origin
(Davidson 1975), located 17.5 km east of the Yucatán Peninsula, in the Caribbean
Sea (Figure 1). More than 75% of the island is covered with tropical semi-deciduous
forest, low tropical deciduous forest, and mangroves (Martínez-Morales 1996). Co-
zumel Island has two species and four subspecies of endemic mammals (Hall 1981;
Decker 1991; Wilson and Reeder 1993), four species and fifteen subspecies of en-
demic birds (Howell and Webb 1995), and one endemic reptile species (Taylor and
Cooley 1995).
Boa constrictor is well known from numerous localities on the Yucatán Peninsula,
where it is widespread (Lee 1996). Until recently, however, there were no records
of this snake for Cozumel Island despite explorations by herpetologists and other
naturalists since the 1800s (Cope 1885; see also Smith and Taylor 1945; Himmel-
stein 1980; Dundee et al. 1986; Lee 1996). It is unlikely that the many experienced
958

Figure 1. Map of Cozumel Island, showing the locations where boas (Boa constrictor) were released in
1971 (according to local informants), and where they were observed during 1994–1995.

naturalists who visited the island (e.g., Cabot, Gaumer, Ridgway, Griscom) could
have overlooked this conspicuous snake. The first published record of the species in
Cozumel was in 1991 (López-González 1991).
In this paper we present evidence which indicates that the boa was introduced
recently by humans onto Cozumel, and we provide information on its current dis-
tribution and abundance on the island. We discuss the conservation implications of
the boa introduction for the endemic fauna of Cozumel, and we make research and
management recommendations to minimise the impact of this introduced predator on
the biota of Cozumel.

Introduction of the boa onto Cozumel

During ecological research carried out on the island (October 1994 to June 1995),
14 local informants independently stated that the boa was introduced onto Cozumel
 959

Island in 1971, during the production of the Mexican film ‘El jardín de tía Isabel’
(Cazals 1971). Informants were 50–80 years of age, and were native to the island or
had live there for at least 25 years. They claimed that about 10 to 30 boas were re-
leased around Palancar beach (southwestern Cozumel Island) and on a beach between
Xlapac and Punta Molas (northeastern Cozumel Island, Figure 1). According to the
informants, prior to this release there were no boas on Cozumel.
On 5 March 1998, we interviewed, separately, Felipe Cazals and Julián Pastor,
two of the key participants in the film production of ‘El jardín de tía Isabel’. Each
of them indicated that the person who was responsible of the animals during the
production released the boas, on his own initiative, after they finished filming (some-
time around April 1971). Apparently, he also liberated collared peccaries (Pecari
tajacu), tarantulas, and probably green iguanas (Iguana iguana) and other wildlife.
They recalled the number of boas used during the film production might have been
2 to 6 large individuals (2 m or larger) and indicated they were not aware of the
original source of the snakes. They did not know where on the island the boas were
released. Cazals also informed us that the person who introduced the animals died
during the 1970s. Pastor reported that sometime in 1989–1990, Miguel Borge, then
Governor of the state of Quintana Roo, told him that as a result of the liberation,
boas had become very abundant on the island and were severely affecting the fauna,
and that eradication efforts had not been successful. The Governor also told Pastor
than an eradication programme was being planned (apparently no official control or
eradication programme ever materialised).
A little more than 25 years after the introduction, the boa is now widespread on
the island (Figure 1). Its population status has never been assessed, but during line
transect sampling to assess game mammal and bird populations (386 km of transects
surveyed), seven sightings of boas were made incidentally; in addition, two sightings
of boas were made during prospective surveys and one was made in San Miguel, the
main town on the island (Figure 1). All transects were diurnal (usually between 700
and 1600 hours), mainly on clear days, although some were rainy. During transect
sampling an observer walked at a slow pace (approximately 1 km/h), looking for
animals. The number of boas observed during line transect sampling represented an
encounter rate of 1.8 boas for every 100 km of forest surveyed (or approximately 1.8
for every 100 hours walking transects). However, this value is clearly a minimum,
because observations of snakes were not the objective of these transects (see further
below). Apparently there are no published reports on the abundance of boas in other
sites, so comparisons are not possible. All the observed boas but one were about 1.5
metres long, the exception being about 2.5 metres. Seven of the boas were seen on
the ground, one in the lower branches of a tree (ca 1.5 m above ground), one on a
shrub (less than 1 m above ground), and one in a seasonal pond (ca 1.5 m in diameter
and 10 cm deep). All boas were resting, except for one which was eating a Caribbean
Dove (Leptotila jamaicensis). The boas were not collected or captured.
960

The fact that most boas were about 1.5 m suggests that the snakes which were
observed were not the same individuals that were originally introduced, which should
have been considerable larger as a result of 25 years of growth. Also, that they are
probably descendants of a founder population, and they happened to be encountered
because they were big enough to be on the ground and conspicuous. Additionally, it
is highly likely that many smaller snakes were not encountered because of their more
arboreal habits, their lower sighting probability because of their smaller size, and,
finally, the lack of nocturnal surveys.

A threat to the endemic and native fauna

Alien species introduced by humans can exterminate native species by competing

with them, preying upon them or destroying their habitat. Such effects are generally
greatest on geographic and ecological islands (e.g., Savidge 1987; Case and Bolger
1991; Rodda and Fritts 1992; Witte et al. 1992; Fritts 1993; Hadfield et al. 1993;
Smith and Quin 1996). Endemic taxa on islands are particularly susceptible to in-
troduced predators. The case of the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis) on Guam
(Savidge 1987; Rodda and Fritts 1992; Rodda et al. 1997) is a well documented
example of the ecological damage that can be caused by an introduced snake.
The boa could prove to be a serious problem for the survival of the endemic and
native fauna of Cozumel, especially small-sized animals that carry out their activities
mainly in the understorey of the forest, e.g., the Cozumel Thrasher (Toxostoma gut-
tatum), endemic rodents (Reinthrodontomys spectabilis, Oryzomys couesi cozumelae
and Peromyscus leucopus cozumelae) and the Cozumel whiptail (Cnemidophorus
cozumela). Current information is insufficient to determine whether or not the
introduction of the boa might account for the very low population size of some
wildlife on Cozumel (e.g., the Cozumel Thrasher, the Central American agouti,
Dasyprocta punctata, the Cozumel raccoon, Procyon pygmaeus, the Cozumel coati,
Nasua narica nelsoni, and the Cozumel Curassow, Crax rubra griscomi; Martínez-
Morales 1999; Martínez-Morales and Cuarón, unpublished data). Boas up to 1.5 m
are likely to prey on amphibians, reptiles, small mammals and birds (including their
eggs), but larger boas could also kill medium-sized mammals (e.g., the Central Amer-
ican agouti, the Cozumel raccoon, the Cozumel coati; see Janzen 1970; Chapman
1986) and the Cozumel Curassow. The young of these species may be particularly
vulnerable to the boa.
It is possible that Cozumel vertebrates may not be entirely naive and vulnerable
to large snake predators. Oxybelis fulgidus, a thin and moderately large diurnal snake
(snout-vent length about 1.5 m; Lee 1996), which preys on lizards, birds and small
mammals, inhabits the island. Cozumel vertebrates presumably coevolved with that
predator. Yet Oxybelis is far from being as formidable a predator as Boa is. Also, most
other large and several small snakes found on the Yucatán Peninsula, as well as many
 961

avian and most mammalian carnivores, are absent from Cozumel. This suggests the
Cozumel fauna may have evolved and retained taxa that might not have survived in
the face of heavy predation pressure. Despite considerable native vegetation cover
on Cozumel, many species are found in very low numbers. Boas may be a very
significant factor affecting the populations of some of the vertebrates on the island.
The present broad distribution of the boa on Cozumel may be explained by its
reproductive rate and the lack of predators. The grey fox (Urocyon cinereoargen-
teus), the Cozumel raccoon, the Cozumel coati, and some raptors (Buteo brachyurus,
B. magnirostris, and Buteogallus anthracinus) are potential predators of small boas
(ca. 50 cm), but larger boas on Cozumel have essentially no predators, except for
humans. Moreover, the grey fox, the raccoon and the coati are now found in very
low numbers (unpublished data). The ophiophagus snake Drymarcon corais and the
Great Black Hawk (Buteogallus urubitinga) have been reported to prey upon the boa
in the Yucatán Peninsula (Duellman 1963; Gerhardt et al. 1993), but these species do
not occur on Cozumel Island (Lee 1996; Macouzet 1997).

Eradication and disposal of the boa

All available evidence strongly indicates that humans were responsible for the intro-
duction of the boa onto Cozumel, and that the species is established and expanding
on the island. We cannot, however, exclude the possibility that the species dispersed
naturally onto the island or that it was overlooked before 1971. We suggest that
detailed morphological and/or biochemical research on the origin of Boa constrictor
on Cozumel be undertaken immediately. If an anthropogenic origin is confirmed, we
recommend that this snake be eradicated from the island in order to protect the unique
biological diversity of Cozumel. Action should be taken soon, before the problem
becomes acute. Every opportunity should be taken to obtain as much information as
possible on the biology of the Cozumel population of boa. This should include, for
example, information on diet, reproduction, population structure, morphology, and
on the effects of this species on the biota of Cozumel. Also of value would be genetic
and other information to infer patterns of the spatial dispersal of the species on the
island after its introduction, and information on population growth after the presumed
bottleneck episode (the introduction). The latter information could be useful for man-
agement of boas in other areas, as well as for other species of conservation concern.
Eradication involves two general options: Euthanasia and live capture. In the
former case, specimens should be preserved as museum specimens and deposited in
established collections, or, if compatible with conservation priorities and beneficial to
conservation actions, could be used (meat, skin and other products) either commer-
cially or non-commercially. If live-captured, specimens could be used for scientific
research, captive breeding programmes (for scientific, conservation or commercial
purposes), or environmental education programmes. Reintroduction or repopulation
962

programmes with Cozumel specimens should be discouraged because of the uncertain

origin of the founding stock. In all cases, careful records should be kept of each spe-
cimen, its biological characteristics, and the context in which it was captured. Priority
should be given to the options that provide the most information for the understanding
of the situation of the boa on Cozumel and the management of the species. The most
suitable options for the overall conservation of the species and general conservation
priorities in the region should be implemented.

Acknowledgements

Special thanks are due to all the local informants from Cozumel Island, and to Felipe
Cazals and Julián Pastor, for their valuable information and their concern about the
impact of boas on Cozumel. Thanks to Carlos Cuarón, José Díaz Rodríguez, Pelayo
Gutiérrez, and Lucio Ortigoza, for their help obtaining a copy of ‘El jardín de tía
Isabel’. We thank Humberto Bahena, Jack Frazier, and two anonymous reviewers,
who contributed useful comments on this paper. Financial support was provided by
CONACYT, The British Council (MAMM) and DGAPA, UNAM (ADC).

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