The green anaconda is dark green in color with black oval patches on its back. This pattern blends in with the wet, dense vegetation of its habitat. The sides have similar spots with yellow centers.
The scales on its belly are yellow and black. The scales on the underside of the tail have a particular pattern, which is unique to each snake. It's a form of identification, like a human fingerprint.
The eyes and nostrils are on the top of the head, enabling the anaconda to breathe and to see its prey while its body lays submerged under water. They can stay completely submerged for ten minutes. While they are agile swimmers, they sometimes prefer to let the river's current carry them downstream with only their nostrils above the surface.
Anacondas are a source of many myths that exaggerate their size and attacks on humans. Reports of giant constrictors actually killing and eating humans are quite rare.
Green anacondas are found in Trinidad and tropical South America, east of the Andes, south to Bolivia and northern Paraguay.
They live in sluggish streams, rivers and adjacent swamps and marshes. While the anaconda frequents the water and is an excellent swimmer, it is very capable of moving on land and has limited climbing abilities.
STATUS
Near Threatened
SCIENTIFIC NAME
Eunectes murinus
POPULATION
4 species
LENGTH
up to 5 m (16.4 ft), with adult females, with a mean length of about 4.6 m (15.1 ft)
WEIGHT
up to 227 kg (500 lb)
HABITAT
SWAMPS
The anaconda has several adapted traits that allow it to survive successfully in a rainforest environment. Another adaptation they have is the patterns on an anaconda's body. The greenish tinge to their scales and their mottled pattern make for effective camouflage which helps the anaconda hide from predators.
Anacondas are sometimes hunted illegally for their skin or to be sold as pets, but this is rare. Their size makes them inconvenient pets, and their skin is not very popular for clothing and shoes. They are also very difficult to catch.
Most of their time is spent in the water hunting. Although they use both sight and smell to hunt, they also have the ability to sense heat emitted by potential prey.
Anacondas are not venomous; they use constriction instead to subdue their prey. Once an anaconda sights its target, it will grab the animal in its jaws, locking it in with its teeth.
The Anaconda belongs to the boa constrictor family of snakes. It is the heaviest snake in the world, and one of the longest.
