Charina bottae
Silhouette: Alex Slavenko · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The rubber boa (Charina bottae) is a species of snake in the family Boidae and is native to western North America. It is sometimes known as the coastal rubber boa or the northern rubber boa and is not to be confused with the southern rubber boa (Charina umbratica).
Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville described the rubber boa in 1835. The generic name Charina is from the Ancient Greek "graceful" or "delightful", and the specific name bottae honors Dr. Paolo E. Botta, an Italian ship's surgeon, explorer, and naturalist.
The family Boidae consists of the nonvenomous snakes commonly called boas and consists of 43 species. The genus Charina consists of two species, both of which are found in North America. There is debate on whether the southern rubber boa, a population found in the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains east of Los Angeles in California, should be a separate species or a subspecies (as Charina bottae umbratica). A study published in 2001 concluded there is enough evidence to indicate that the proposed independent species, Charina umbratica, is a separate species based on its geologically separate genetic nature and morphological differences. Wikipedia →
Recording0:11
United States · 2022
© jamiecatchfly · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Living Desert Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Sedgwick County Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Woodland Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Santa Barbara Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Reptile Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States |
No species of the same family or order lives in Yellowstone National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Rubber Boa sighting in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 4th most-seen of the 5 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June–July and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Rubber Boa in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August and October–May, the lowest months.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Rubber Boa sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
4th of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Northern Rubber Boa sightings, Yellowstone National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (United States, about 20%), Yosemite National Park (United States, about 10%) and Grand Teton National Park (United States, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Northern Rubber Boa is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Yellowstone National Park (10 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
