Anaconda photos are the largest snake in the world. Characteristics, description and lifestyle of the anaconda. Natural enemies of the anaconda

An anaconda versus a python in a fight will most likely win, unless, of course, it encounters the very long snake in the world, the reticulated python. But here, too, her chances of winning are much higher, since she, although slightly inferior to him in length, is significantly superior in weight.

A large anaconda can also cope with a young crocodile. Of course, she cannot survive against an adult, massive, large specimen; in a fight with him, she will find herself in the role of prey. But she can handle a small crocodile without much difficulty, and therefore is quite capable of feasting on it.

Anaconda is a vertebrate animal from the class of reptiles, belongs to the genus of snakes from the subfamily of boas and lives in tropical latitudes South America. This snake feels great in fresh water, and therefore prefers to spend as much time as possible in aquatic environment, for which it received the name water boa. Since it belongs to the subfamily of boas, the snake is not poisonous: it strangles its prey.

Currently, the following types of anacondas have been discovered:

• Giant - the largest snake in the world, more than five meters long, lives in tropical latitudes and settles in swamps and large rivers;
• Paraguayan - length no more than three meters, lives in closed low-current reservoirs. In addition to Paraguay, it lives in Bolivia, Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil;
• Deshauersea - lives in the northwestern part of Brazil;
• Eunectes beniensis is a snake about four meters long, representatives of this species are similar to the Paraguayan anaconda and there is a high probability that in the future it will become its subspecies. It was discovered in Bolivia in 2002 and on this moment is under study.

Description

Anaconda is considered one of the most major representatives genus of snakes in the world: the longest measured anaconda is 5.2 meters long and weighs 97.5 kg (females are larger than males). There is a lot of information about larger specimens, whose size exceeds ten meters, but this data is not confirmed by anything, and is very doubtful. It is worth noting that the anaconda versus the reticulated python is inferior in length (according to the Guinness Book, the maximum length of a python is 9.75 meters), but still wins in terms of weight.

The anaconda has a greenish-grayish color with large brown spots of a rounded or oblong shape, which alternate in a checkerboard pattern (this color hides a hunting snake very well). Speaking about the anaconda, it is not without interest that it, like other snakes, sheds its old skin, but does this without leaving the reservoir: it rubs against its bottom.

Although anacondas practically cannot hear sounds, they have a very well developed nervous system, therefore various fluctuations in environment they feel with their whole body.

But as for vision, the snake periodically goes blind: instead of eyelids, there are motionless transparent scales on its eyes, which, when the snake begins to shed, become cloudy, blocking the view. Speaking about the anaconda, it should be borne in mind that, being a snake, it does not blink, so there is an opinion that it hypnotizes its prey.

Lifestyle

One of interesting facts The thing about the anaconda is that it is almost always in the water, and tries to go to the coast as little as possible: it swims excellently and is capable of staying under water for a long time, and in order not to suffocate, its nostrils close the valves during a dive. She prefers to swim in bodies of water either with a very calm current or without it at all.

The boa constrictor comes to the shore mainly to bask in the sun, and sometimes even climbs trees to do this. Speaking about the anaconda, it should be borne in mind that it moves like all snakes: the main role in this process is played by the tenacious scales located on the stomach, as well as the muscles of the body.

Once on land, the snake does not move far from the water, and if the reservoir dries up, it either moves to another, or goes down the river. If during a drought it is not possible to change the reservoir, the boa constrictor buries itself in the silt located at the bottom of the reservoir, after which it falls into torpor until the rainy season begins.

Nutrition

Like all boa constrictors, the anaconda is not poisonous: having attacked the victim, it embraces it “in an embrace” from which the animal rarely manages to free itself. Her grip is so strong that even one of the most formidable predators in the world, a crocodile is capable of becoming its victim (however, an adult large crocodile will get rid of the capture and, most likely, will eat it itself).

The largest snake in the world eats various reptiles and small mammals that come to drink. Usually these are rodents, turtles, waterfowl, lizards. Larger individuals can eat capybaras, peccaries, medium-sized crocodiles (up to two meters); there is even a known case when a large anaconda managed to eat a 2.5-meter python. They may well eat representatives of their own species.

Having smelled prey, the snake freezes in the water and becomes motionless. After the victim approaches, the boa constrictor pounces on it with lightning speed and strangles it, completely cutting off oxygen by immobilizing the chest, so the victim dies from suffocation.

After this, the snake eats it whole, greatly stretching its mouth and throat. Like all snakes, its mouth stretches very well with the help of an elastic ligament connecting the right and left sides lower jaw, which are connected to the skull by bones, the ends of which provide them with rotational movement. Thanks to this, the largest snake in the world is able to swallow an animal significantly larger than itself (for example, a young crocodile).

Reproduction

When talking about anacondas, it should be borne in mind that they are solitary animals, but when the mating period begins, they gather in flocks (this happens during the beginning of the rainy season). At this time, there are usually several males near one female and, just like other snakes, when mating they intertwine into a ball of several individuals.

The anaconda is ovoviviparous: it bears eggs inside the body, while the cubs mainly receive nutrition not from the snake’s body, but from the egg. Before being born, baby snakes leave the egg shell while still in the mother’s body. The female carries the cubs for about six to seven months and during this time she loses weight by almost half.

The female gives birth to from 28 to 42 cubs with a length of 50 to 80 cm, sometimes their number can reach up to a hundred. Immediately after birth, molting begins, so the baby snake does not eat anything at this time. When the molting ends, the baby is already able to swim, hunt, and feed on its own. At this time, small anacondas are extremely vulnerable and are eaten by birds, crocodiles and other predators.

Enemies of anacondas

If we talk about the anaconda, it is necessary to keep in mind that this boa constrictor is so strong that it has practically no rivals among snakes (an anaconda can easily withstand a fight against a python). Sometimes she may be attacked by a jaguar or large crocodile. A large individual is rarely attacked: the crocodile usually attacks and eats baby snakes or males weakened after mating. There were two recorded cases where an adult male crocodile managed to cope with female anacondas (such situations are the exception rather than the rule).

Despite the fact that the boa constrictor eats many mammals, rumors about the anaconda as a snake that feeds on humans are greatly exaggerated. A boa constrictor of this species rarely attacks a person (despite the fact that the boa constrictor is longer, the person is vertical in relation to the surface, and therefore she may consider him too large prey for herself).

There have been isolated cases of attacks on humans, caused by the fact that the snake sees only a part of the body that it can handle, or believes that they want to take food away from it. And then, she will attack a person sluggishly, reluctantly, rather trying to intimidate in the hope that he will leave. The only case where it is known for sure that an anaconda managed to eat a person is the death of an Indian teenager.

Since the snake lives in hard-to-reach, impassable places, even if there were cases of death, there was usually no one to record them.

It is man who is the most serious enemy for an adult anaconda: Indians hunt it for its skin, which is used for textiles and haberdashery, as well as meat. Hunting anacondas in the countries where they live is not prohibited, since it is believed that there are quite a lot of them and they give rise to numerous offspring. It is difficult to say exactly how many anacondas there are in the world, since they prefer to live in difficult places where the human foot steps as little as possible.

Snakes themselves are quite unsightly creatures and few people like them by sight, much less by touch. It's unlikely large number meeting a snake in some forest will cause some positive emotions, but do not forget that there are snakes different sizes and if in our forests you rarely see anything larger than a snake or a viper, then when traveling somewhere in the tropics we risk stumbling upon a specimen that is completely unusual for our eyes - an anaconda. The largest snake in the world actually lives in quite inaccessible places, especially for ordinary tourists, but still we will introduce you to this amazing slithering giant. So, let's start with the most interesting thing - the largest snake usually reaches 5-6 meters in length, but sometimes there are 9-meter specimens. The longest snake caught was a giant anaconda with a length of 11.43 meters. And although it was not possible to preserve this individual, its length was reliably documented. At the moment, the 9-meter anaconda kept at the New York Zoological Society is considered the longest. You can identify an anaconda not only by huge size, but also by its characteristic grayish-green color with two rows of round and oblong brown spots on the back and yellow spots with a black border on the sides. This is almost perfect camouflage for a snake that is accustomed to stalking its victims while sitting in water covered with leaves and algae.
Due to the inaccessibility of anaconda habitats, there is no objective data on the size of their population yet. Basically, these giant snakes live in the quiet backwaters of the Amazon and Orinoco, only occasionally crawling ashore to bask in the sun.
IN old literature one could often come across the name “water boa”, because this is really one of the subspecies of boa constrictors, and most spends its life precisely in water, but still this subspecies has proper name- giant anaconda.
If the reservoir in which the anaconda lives dries up and there are no other creeks nearby, the snake buries itself in the silt and goes into a kind of hibernation until the rainy season begins. The largest snake in the world cannot live and hunt normally outside of water bodies.
Anacondas even shed their old skin “without leaving home” - they rub against the river bottom, gradually pulling off the old cover.
Just like other boas, the anaconda is not poisonous, and pacifies its victims with “close embraces” and subsequent squeezing, from which it is almost impossible for the animal to free itself, and a person still has, albeit scanty, a chance to catch the snake’s tail and prevent for him to wrap himself around himself - this is exactly what trainers do in the circus. Although such a trick is unlikely to help with an anaconda, because... she is incomparably larger than any circus boa constrictor. By the way, female anacondas are much larger and stronger than males.
The largest snake catches unlucky animals, lying in wait for them near the water. But this applies not only to tapirs, capybaras and similar herbivores - there have been cases when a large anaconda even devoured a jaguar! Of course, to catch this one dangerous predator, the snake must be appropriate - ordinary 6-meter anacondas cannot do this. In addition, many waterfowl and birds, as well as other snakes, often come for lunch - there is a known case when an anaconda strangled and swallowed a 2.5-meter python. Anacondas also eat their own kind without the slightest remorse - survival of the fittest.
There is a misconception that the largest snake in the world flattens its victims, breaking bones and damaging internal organs. This is wrong. The anaconda's embrace is not aimed at breaking and injuring its food - it is enough for it that the victim's access to oxygen is completely blocked by immobilizing the chest and the entire body, so that all animals caught by the anaconda die from suffocation.
Adult anaconda wildlife there is virtually no threat - only a few jaguars and caimans can cope with it, but this happens very rarely. Young individuals die en masse from the teeth of a variety of predators.
The largest snake in the world is often mentioned in many books and even became the main negative “character” of a whole series of Hollywood thrillers of the same name.

The impenetrable jungles of South America, through which the most deep river world - Amazon. Its waters hide many different animals from people's eyes, but the most impressive of them is the giant anaconda!

This representative of large aquatic boas chooses to live in quiet tributaries and wetlands of the Amazon jungle and its neighbor Orinoco. The greenish-yellow color with brown spots reliably hides the snake in dark water among plants and foliage.

And the water itself allows you to be fast and agile, because a giant snake in adulthood can reach a length of 6 meters and weigh 150 kilograms. However, this is far from the limit. Scientists have encountered anacondas twice this size.

Indians living in the jungle great river, dubbed the giant snakes - sukuriju, which translates as “ giant monster" They prefer to stay away from areas where anacondas can be found. Although the opinion that the snake hunts people is not entirely true.

The main food of aquatic giants are other snakes, mammals and birds, which are abundant in the jungle and especially near the water. But in fairness, it is worth noting that attacks on people did take place.

The first encounters with anacondas were described by Spanish colonialists, noting that the snakes reached a length of up to 20 meters. One of the Amazon explorers, Colonel Percy Fawcett, said that he saw a 19-meter snake.

True, the girth of her body, according to the narrator, was only 30 centimeters, which raises some doubts about the reliability of the information. After all, caught anacondas 10 meters long had a girth of about 2 meters.

As further study of these aquatic boas has shown, a 30-centimeter girth usually corresponds to a snake “only” 6 meters long.

The testimony of priest Viktor Heinz, dated 1925, is more credible. The respected gentleman says that the snake he encountered was 20 meters long. But, according to the holy father, he indicated the dimensions of that part of the snake that was above the water.

The priest defined the giant’s girth as a “barrel”. Documentary evidence is not limited to these dimensions of snakes. So several French-Brazilian researchers discovered a 23-meter anaconda.

The snake was shot, which made it possible to take measurements of the monster. The documents indicate the dimensions of the boa constrictor's head. Its length was 50 centimeters, and at the neck 60 centimeters.

In addition to records, there are also photographs of giants. In 1948, in Pernambuco, Brazil, a newspaper published a photograph of a 40-meter-long anaconda. During the same period of time, another newspaper published a photo of a 35-meter snake. But scientists did not take these photographs seriously.

In our time, the anaconda, which was discovered in Colombia in 1944, is considered the record holder among aquatic boas, and its existence was duly documented. Its length reached 11 meters 43 centimeters. Since the fact of its existence was established, the anaconda took a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

In captivity, the largest anaconda lives in New York, in the terrarium of the Zoological Society. The 130-kilogram snake is 9 meters long.

However, the search for the largest anaconda does not stop. Those who want to catch the snake are attracted not only by the opportunity to write their name in history, but also by the $50,000 prize established in this country in the 1930s.

Nevertheless, before you go in search of the world's largest anaconda, it is worth keeping in mind that in order to receive a prize you must provide the body of a snake, that is, bring it from the wilds of the Amazon, and it is not difficult to imagine how much it can weigh, based on the dimensions indicated above.

TravelAsk continues to talk about all the best things in our world. And you can find out which snake holds the record for its size.

Reptile giants

Most big snake considered an anaconda (Green or Giant). It is usually no more than 10 meters in length, however, it can weigh up to 220 kilograms.

Today, the largest of the anacondas lives in the terrarium of the Zoological Society in New York: it weighs 130 kilograms and is about 9 meters long.

The most long anaconda

And here is the most long length the anaconda that was recorded was 11 meters and 43 centimeters. In 1944, the snake was measured by a geologist who was exploring the Colombian jungle in search of gold.

He stunned the snake, measured it, but after that it came to its senses and crawled away. So we can only guess about the reliability of this fact. However, to this day the length of almost 12 meters is a generally recognized record, listed in the Guinness Book of Records.

In the 1930s, a reward of one thousand dollars was even announced for anyone who could prove the existence of an anaconda with a body larger than 12.2 meters. Then the premium increased to 6 thousand dollars, and the size of the snake decreased to some 9 meters and 12 centimeters. No one ever received the award. By the way, today it is about 50 thousand dollars, so everyone who wants to get rich and enjoy the jungle can start searching.

And apparently, a 9-meter snake living in a terrarium in New York is the limit for today.

So python or anaconda

In fact, it's fair to share the top spot between the anaconda and the Asian reticulated python.

Last in natural environment habitat can grow up to 150 kilograms and up to 12 meters in length. But this is also just a theory. The only giant python that can be truly measured lives at the Philadelphia Zoo. He is one meter smaller than the anaconda from the Zoological Society in New York.

What does history say?

However, in the history of the planet there were truly giant snakes. Zoologists gave them the names Titanoboa.

The monster weighed more than a ton with its relatively small size - about 14 meters. It lived approximately 58 million years ago in South America.

The giant could easily swallow a whole crocodile, and it’s not even worth talking about smaller prey.

The snake was not poisonous; it killed by force, squeezing the prey with its body.

After the dinosaurs went extinct, Titanoboa lived for about 10 million years. During this period she was the most big predator on the ground.

Where do anacondas live

The snake lives in the tropics of South America, in the backwaters of the Amazon. It is there that she looks for prey.

Despite many films and legends, the anaconda is not terrible for humans; cases of attack are rare. The snake feeds on small and medium-sized mammals. She strangles the victim with her body and swallows it.

It can take up to several days for the prey to be digested, during which time the snake quietly dozes in solitude.

It is very difficult to determine the number of anacondas, since they live in hard-to-reach places. Their average length is 6 meters; larger individuals are extremely rare in nature.

Second and third place

In second place in terms of size is dark tiger python, the maximum length of which was recorded as 9 meters and 15 centimeters.

Usually they do not exceed 5.5 meters and 70 kilograms.

In third place is another giant - the Indian python.

A large individual reaches 6 meters in length.

Anaconda (water boa) - large non-venomous snake, belongs to the class reptiles, order squamate, suborder snakes, infraorder lower snakes, family pseudopods, subfamily, genus anaconda ( Eunectes).

According to etymologists, the name of the snake originates from the Sinhalese language and comes from the word “henakandaya”, meaning “ rattlesnake" Another version says that the anaconda got its name from a Tamil word that sounds similar to the word “anaconda,” which translates as “elephant killer.” IN scientific classification The genus name is Eunectes, which means “good swimmer” in Latin.

Anaconda - description and characteristics. What does an anaconda look like?

The anaconda is a very large snake, with females being much larger than males. In accordance with scientifically confirmed data, the largest female anaconda was caught in Venezuela: the length of the anaconda was 5 meters 21 centimeters including the tail, and the body weight was 97.5 kilograms. Some scientists regard rumors about the capture of anacondas 9-11 m long as false. Although Soviet books indicate a different maximum length of this snake - 11.43 meters (Akimushkin I. “Animal World”, “Life of Animals” edited by Zenkevich, vol. 4, part 2).

Like all reptiles, the axial skeleton of the anaconda is divided into a body and a tail, consisting of vertebrae, the number of which can be 435 pieces.

The snake's ribs are mobile and diverge widely when swallowing large prey.

The anaconda skull is distinguished by a movable articulation of bones connected by elastic ligaments.

Thanks to this feature, the snake has the ability to open its mouth very wide, swallowing big catch entirely.

The nostrils and eyes of the anaconda are located high on the head, thanks to which these snakes, like crocodiles, can breathe and at the same time be completely under water, guarding potential prey.

The snake's eyes are protected by transparent scales (eyelids) and are adapted to track the movement of objects rather than focus images.

Anaconda teeth are long and sharp, but do not contain poison. Therefore, an anaconda bite for a person can be very sensitive, but completely safe.

The snake's tongue is an important olfactory and gustatory organ that is in constant motion.

Due to the absence of mucous glands, the anaconda's skin is dense and dry, shiny due to glossy scales.

The molting of a reptile occurs according to the principle of “a stocking turned inside out” - the snake sheds a single layer at a time.

The body of the anaconda is uniformly colored grayish-green, yellowish or olive in color.

There are 2 rows of large dark spots along the spine - a classic example of camouflage that perfectly hides the snake against the background of the water surface and dark aquatic vegetation.

How long does an anaconda live?

Like most large snakes (and boa constrictors), anacondas grow throughout life cycle, the first years are especially intense, and in adulthood it is much slower. It is not known exactly how long the anaconda lives in natural conditions, but in captivity average age snakes are 5-6 years old. The maximum recorded lifespan of an anaconda was 28 years.

Where does the anaconda live?

Anacondas live on the island of Trinidad, as well as throughout the tropics of South America: the range covers countries such as Venezuela and Peru, Brazil and eastern Paraguay, Ecuador, northern Bolivia, Colombia, Guyana and Guiana. Typical environment Where the anaconda lives are quiet river beds with weak currents, river backwaters and swamps. If the reservoir dries up, the anaconda snake moves lower along the river bed or buries itself in the silt and goes into suspended animation until the rainy season.

These huge snakes are excellent swimmers, because they spend almost their entire lives in the water, occasionally crawling ashore to bask in the sun, or climb trees, wrapping their body rings around the lower branches.

What does an anaconda eat?

At the bottom of the river, the anaconda sheds its old skin, hunts there or lies in wait for prey near the shore. The anaconda is a non-venomous snake, and it is characterized by a hunting method characteristic of all boa constrictors: the snake motionlessly guards its prey, and then makes a sharp lunge, wraps its muscular body around the victim and strangles it. But it does not crush or break the animal’s bones, as boa constrictors usually do. As a result, the anaconda's victim dies from suffocation. The snake can also grab prey with its teeth.

Anaconda feeding different types mammals and reptiles, fish occupies the least significant part in the snake’s menu.

Its food is agoutis, iguanas and others, waterfowl, as well as some large animals: capybaras, peccaries, young caimans, capybaras, tupinambis and, including quite large pythons.

Anacondas, which are picky eaters, practice cannibalism. Also, small domestic animals often become victims of giant snakes:, and.

Despite the powerful stomach acids, large food is digested for several weeks, leaving a significant supply of nutrients and energy in the reptile’s body. Thanks to this feature, anaconda snakes are by no means voracious and for a long time can go completely without food.

Anaconda - photos, types and names

The anaconda genus includes 4 modern looking snake:

• Giant anaconda (common anaconda, green anaconda)(Eunectes murinus)

most close-up view anaconda with a body length of about 5-6 meters. The body of the snake is gray-green, the back is covered with 2 rows of large brown spots of a round or oval shape, arranged in a checkerboard pattern. Along the side surface of the snake's body there is a series of small yellow round markings with a black border. The giant anaconda lives in tropical zone South America from Brazil and Paraguay to Bolivia, Peru and the island of Trinidad. The snake prefers low-flowing, muddy creeks and shallow lakes of the Amazon and Orinoco river basins.

• Paraguayan anaconda, she's the same southern or yellow anaconda(Eunectes notaeus)

has a length of 2 to 4 meters. Most representatives of the species are yellow in color, but there are greenish and gray individuals. The body of the anaconda is decorated with a large pattern of black or brown spots of a round or oblong shape with a light center. The Paraguayan anaconda lives in still or slow-flowing waters of Paraguay, northern Argentina and southern Bolivia.

• Eunectes beniensis

snake resembling appearance Paraguayan anaconda, and in this regard, there is a possibility of classifying this species as Eunectes notaeus. The length of the anaconda is 4 m, the snakes have a brownish-olive or brown color on the back and a gray-brown-yellow color on the lower part of the body. The pattern is represented by 5 longitudinal dark stripes on the head and hundreds of uniformly dark spots on the back. This species of anaconda inhabits swamps and rain forests in northeastern Bolivia and possibly in adjacent areas of Brazil.

• Anaconda Deschauensei(Eunectes deschauenseei)

a rare, little-studied species, whose representatives are distinguished by their relatively small sizes: the length of an adult anaconda is 1.3-1.9 meters. The snake lives in swampy areas in northeastern Brazil and Guiana.