ANACONDA – AN AQUATIC GIANT KILLER
This snake, as the dictionary interprets, is a very large semi aquatic snake of the boa family, usually found in tropical South America.
The secret about this predator surfaced, little by little, only recently. Movies also portrayed this titanic killer as an invincible one. But does it prey on human? Yes, a well grown Anaconda can swallow a man, besides deer and other animals!
Found mostly in the swamp and murky waters of Venezuela, and is known to be lying low in the waters. It is said that this snake, when looking directly at men, could hypnotize with its gaze, spit poison and kill! The rivers of Amazon and Orinoco are the breeding ground for it.
Many stories were told about it, some of them unbelievable. Once, a news report said that a 47 meter long Anaconda was spotted and that it had wrecked havoc.
But the largest anaconda caught, so far, measured about 12 meters and weighed over 350 kilos. An interesting fact is that, females are the largest than males! (It is the same in the case of sharks, too)
Anaconda prefers to remains submerged in waters when a prey is drinking water, and upon reaching near it, it would strike quick and pull the prey down under water and kill it by coiling around it. Meanwhile, the prey would die of drowning, too. Anacondas also squirt some foul smelling musk that contains poison!
Its life span is yet to be ascertained. However, by piecing the information gathered, it can live up to 20 years or more. A male anaconda has sniffing powers that it can tail a female with its tongue. The difference in the growth (length) of male and female is a phenomenon!
When pregnant, it would not eat for months, because it did not want the young ones to get hurt in the melee. An average female gives birth to minimum 30 and up to 90 snakes, hardly from 20 inches to 40 inches length. After the delivery, the mother loses 50 per cent of its body weight.
However, Anacondas fear for pumas, caiman and capybara, the largest rodent in the world!