Tropidophis feicki, also known commonly as the broad-banded dwarf boa, the broad-banded trope, and Feick's dwarf boa, is a species of non-venomous snake in the family Tropidophiidae.McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré TA (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. (series). (volume). (Tropidophis feicki, p. 218). The species is endemic to Cuba.
Etymology The specific name, feicki, is in honor of American biologist John R. Feick.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Tropidophis feicki, p. 88).
Description T. feicki males can grow to snout-to-vent length (SVL), and females to SVL. There are 217–235 ventral scales and 34–41 subcaudal scales. The dorsal ground color is grey or pink. There is a saddle pattern dorsally, but no ventral pattern.
Geographic range T. feicki is found in western Cuba, from Pedrera de Mendoza and Guane, Pinar del Río Province, east to Pan de Matanzas, Matanzas Province.Schwartz A, Thomas R (1975). A Check-list of West Indian Amphibians and Reptiles. Carnegie Museum of Natural History Special Publication No. 1. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Carnegie Museum of Natural History. 216 pp. (Tropidophis feicki, p. 192).
Habitat The preferred habitat of T. feicki is rocky areas such as upland caves, cliffs, and talus deposits, within forest, at altitudes from sea level to .
Behavior T. feicki is arboreal.
Diet T. feicki preys upon small species of lizards.
Reproduction T. feicki is viviparous.
References
Further reading García-Padrón, L. Yusnaviel (2022). "Maximum Size and a New Dietary Record for the Broad-banded Trope , Tropidophis feicki (Squamata: Tropidophiidae), in Cuba". Reptiles & Amphibians 29 (1): 270–272. Rodríguez-Cabrera TM, Torres J, Morell-Savall E (2020). "Easternmost record of the Cuban Broad-banded Trope, Tropidophis feicki (Squamata: Tropidophiidae)". Caribbean Herpetology 71: 1–3. Schwartz A (1957). "A New Species of Boa (Genus Tropidophis) from Western Cuba". American Museum Novitates (1839): 1-8. (Tropidophis feicki, new species). Schwartz A, Henderson RW (1991). Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies: Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History. Gainesville: University of Florida Press. 720 pp. . (Tropidophis feicki, p. 633).