Eunectes murinus Meaning: Good Swimmer (Eunectes) Grey-Mouse-Coloured (Murinus)
Other Names:
Green Anaconda, Water Boa, Mata-toro, Sucuri, Yaqumama and Anaconda
Distribution
Anaconda Distribution Map
Anacondas are found in the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers in South America. They can be found in countries such as Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, the island of Trinidad and northern Paraguay and live in most water sources in the Amazon.
Diet
Green Anacondas are carnivorous reptiles that eat animals great and small, including; fish, birds, reptiles, tapir, deer, jaguars, capybara and caiman. Females are also known to eat males that are smaller than herself. The reason for this is not yet known. Green Anacondas have flexible ligaments that allow them to open up wide and swallow their prey whole. Green Anacondas are known to have hunted on land, although they prefer to hunt in water, as they are good swimmers and they are unlikely to get noticed in the water. While hunting, Green Anacondas will linger around the surface of a water source, waiting patiently for an animal to come by and drink from the water. As the animal blindly bends down to the water, the Green Anaconda will leap from the water and grab the animal with its small, yet sharp, teeth, coiling around the unfortunate victim as they fall into the water and crushes the animal until it can hardly breathe. Then, the Green Anaconda will then move the animal's head into its mouth and then devour it whole and the strong muscles of the Green Anaconda will push the prey down to the Green Anaconda's stomach. Sometimes, the digestion period can last for many weeks. Green Anacondas can go for months on end without eating.
Life
The Water Boa spends most of its life alone. Water Boas mate during the wet season. Mating season can last up to seven months, typically between April and May. During these months, the males will search for females. How they track the females is unknown, but it could be that the female lets of certain smells that the male might be able to smell with his tongue. It is not unnusual for the male to find the same female every mating season. Sometimes, more than one male finds a female, and this will end up with a giant cluster of males coiled around a female, each male trying to mate with the same female. This slow battle can last up to 4 weeks. Males have spurs to entice the female. In clusters, a loud sratching noise can be heard as the spurs sratch the female. The cluster of male snakes upon the female will often have a victor that is the largest and/or the strongest. Sometimes, the female will choose who her mate is. When the female has found her mate, he will use his spurs to make the female ready, and they will mate. Most of this mating will happen in the water. The female is pregnant for up to 7 months and will produce up to 100 born-alive offspring. The young snakes, which are formally called Neonates, grow up to 80cm in length. Their parents do not care for them, and this is one of the reasons Neonates aren't likely to survive, as they will get eaten by predators. Their small size also make them an easy catch. If they do survive, they will soon become ready to mate after a few years after being born.
Description
Anaconda
The Common Anaconda is the largest snake in the world. In length, Common Anacondas can grow to be 9 metres and weigh up to 227 kilograms. While Reticulated Pythons are able to reach lengths longer than Common Anacondas, Common Ancondas will always be the heaviest snakes in the world due to their thickness. Apparently, it would take 11 children to weigh the same as a Common Anaconda. The Common Anaconda is apart of the Constrictor Species, and is therefore not a poisonous snake. Instead of injecting venom into their prey, Common Anacondas will suffocate their prey. Common Anacondas are active during the night. The Scientific Name of the Common Anaconda, Eunectus, means good swimmer. Common Anacondas are known to have large black spots on their scales. some with yellow dots in the black spots. Females are larger than males. In fact, the largest Common Anaconda recorded in history was around 5.21 metres and 97.5 kilograms. Common Anacondas are usually a moss-olive green colour. They have yellow strips on each side of their head and their eyes are high up on their head to help them see their prey without being noticed.
Threats and Dangers
Pollution of the Rivers, loss of habitat and animals that can defeat an Anaconda are always a dangerous risk to the Anaconda, but Anacondas are a thriving species of snake.
Defences
In Greek, Eunectes means "Good Swimmer" and that is exactly what an Anaconda is. Whenever the Common Anaconda is threatened, grown up Green Anacondas can swiftly swim to safety. The size, strength and weight of a single Water Boa also helps the mighty snake look after itself.