''Candoia carinata'', known commonly as the Pacific ground boa, Pacific keel-scaled boa, or Indonesian tree boa, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Boidae The Boidae, commonly known as boas or boids, are a family of nonvenomous snakes primarily found in the Americas, as well as Africa, Europe, Asia, and some Pacific Islands. Boas include some of the world's largest snakes, with the green anaconda ...

Distribution and habitat

''C. carinata'' is found in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

, and the

Bismarck Archipelago The Bismarck Archipelago (, ) is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. Its area is about 50,000 square km. History The first inhabitants o ...

In captivity

''C. carinata'' is popular as a pet in Indonesia, where it is known by the common name ''monopohon'' (''pohon'' means "tree" in the Indonesian language).

Subspecies

''Candoia carinata carinata''

While the

nominate subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

, ''C. c. carinata'', may be occasionally found in trees, this Papuan snake is most often found on the ground. 784 pp. . (''Candoia paulsoni'', pp. 582, 595).

''Candoia carinata paulsoni''

Males of ''C. c. paulsoni'' are smaller and lighter than females, and show spurs. Males are long, and in weight. Females are generally in length and weigh . The colour varies from dark brown to auburn with distinct patterns, though there is also the color

morph Morph may refer to: Biology * Morph (zoology), a visual or behavioral difference between organisms of distinct populations in a species * Muller's morphs, a classification scheme for genetic mutations * "-morph", a suffix commonly used in tax ...

"''paulsoni santa isabella'' ", which is white. The subspecies ''C. c. paulsoni'' was elevated to species status as '' Candoia paulsoni'' by H.M. Smith, et al. in 2001.

''Candoia carinata tepedeleni''

Commonly known as Tepedelen's bevel-nosed boa.

Etymology

The specific name or

subspecific name In zoological nomenclature, a subspecific name is the third part of a trinomen. In zoology there is only one rank below that of species, namely "subspecies". In botanical nomenclature, there are several levels of subspecific names, such as ''vari ...

, ''paulsoni'', is in honour of Swedish

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

John Paulson.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Candoia paulsoni'', p. 202; ''Candoia carinata tepedeleni'', p. 263).). The subspecific name, ''tepedeleni'', is in honour of herpetologist Kumaran Tepedelen.