Programme Coordinator – Sergey Ryabov, Moscow Zoo, Russia
The genus Boiga includes 35 snake species distributed in Asia and Australia, with four closely related species being found in Africa. Many of the species consist of a complex of different subspecies. A large number of island endemic Boiga forms are not sufficiently studied and have unclear taxonomic status.
This taxonomic group is the subject of work of the scientists in many countries of the world. As a result, more than 10 new species have been described over the past 20 years. Most Boiga species are not kept in zoo collections and very little is known about their reproductive biology. At the same time, a significant percentage of the species in this group are distributed in restricted areas of islands or unusual biotopes, which make them extremely vulnerable, and any natural disaster may threaten their survival. The richness and diversity of the species in this genus suggest a need for a large amount of scientific and practical work and active international cooperation.
Goals of the programme:
1. To create the most complete collection of live snakes of the genus Boiga and closely related groups. To study characteristics of the housing conditions, feeding behavior, mating stimulation, and all aspects of reproductive biology of most species in the collection.
2. Based on the obtained data, to conduct a taxonomic revision of the entire group and publish the results of the research in peer-reviewed journals.
3. To establish self-reproducing populations of most species in laboratory conditions, primarily for the conservation of the gene pools of rare and restricted range (island) species threatened with extinction due to possible natural disasters.
Objectives and methods
1) Adaptation of wild caught snakes to laboratory conditions (in the absence of any data and developed methods), treatment of snakes against internal and external parasites and possible diseases and determination of optimal housing conditions for each snake species;
2) Daily registration of data on each individual (data on feeding, ecdysis, mating, changes of temperature, humidity and duration of daylight, health problems, vitamin therapy, weighing, etc.) for establishing a database on the species under the study;
3) Selection of optimal housing and feeding regimes and creation of the diverse food base;
4) Life cycle modelling for each species, based on the geographical latitude and climatic features of the species habitat and selection of methods stimulating breeding of the species under laboratory conditions;
5) Detailed study of reproductive biology of each species (optimal temperatures for spermatogenesis and oogenesis, duration of dry and cool period for stimulation of mating, length of copulation and gestation, selection of optimal egg incubation regimes, measuring the egg length and weight and weight of the females, monitoring egg growth processes, study of incubation duration and probability of the repeated egg laying, selection of initial diet, developing methods of neonate rearing, determination of the age of sexual maturity);
6) Photo recording of all stages of the work;
7) Integration of the data on the studied group of species, clarification of the taxonomic status of indeterminate snake forms, involvement in the description of new forms, publication of scientific papers;
8) Organizing temporary public exhibitions with the demonstration of all available Boiga species and subspecies and their natural colour variations, especially the snakes that were acclimatized or bred for the first time in the world practice, or newly described species.
9) Active promotion of the work under the programme among EARAZA members.