Anaconda

Poll without page-refresh

	del.icio.us
	Digg
	Furl
	Reddit
	Rojo
	Add to OnlyWire

For other uses, see Anaconda (disambiguation).

Eunectes

Green anacondom, E. murinus

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Boidae
Subfamily:	Boinae
Genus:	Eunectes Wagler, 1830

Synonyms

Eunectes - Wagler, 1830^[1]

Eunectes is a genus of non-venomous boas found in tropical South America, commonly called anacondas. An aquatic group of snakes inhabiting swamps and rivers, its members include some of the largest snakes in the world. Despite this, little was known about them until recently. The name Eunectes is derived from the Greek word Eυνήκτης, which means "good swimmer." Three species are currently recognized.^[2]

1 Description
2 Common names
3 Geographic range
4 Reproduction
5 Captivity
6 Species
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

Description

There are some debates about the maximum size of these snakes. Mehrtens (1987) states that the average adult length for the green anaconda, E. murinus, is 18 to 20 feet (5.5–6.1 m), with 25 feet (7.6 m) specimens being very rare. He sets a more conservative maximum at 23 feet (7.0 m). Estimates of 35 to 40 feet (11–12 m) (see giant anaconda) are based on vague data and should be regarded with caution.^[3] In a study of 1,000 specimens captured in Venezuela, the largest was 17 feet (5.2 m) long and weighed 100 pounds (45 kg).^[4]

The Wildlife Conservation Society has, since the early 20th century, offered a large cash reward (currently worth US$50,000) for live delivery of any snake of 30 feet (9.1 m) or more in length. This prize has never been claimed.^[5] In any case, measuring a snake that is stronger than the person is not an easy task. It was found that two scientists independently measuring the same 12-foot (3.7 m) plus snake showed a variation of more than 20% in their results.^[6]

Common names

Local names in South America include the Spanish term "matatoro," meaning "bull killer," and the Native American terms sucuri and "yakumama."

A possible origin for the common name anaconda is the Tamil anaikondran, meaning "elephant killer", or anaikkonda, meaning "having killed an elephant". A name first used in English to name a Ceylonese python, it erroneously was applied to a large South American boa, called in Brazil "sucuri". The word is of uncertain origin, and no snake name like it now is found in Sinhalese or Tamil. Another suggestion is that it represents Tamil It is unclear how this name originated so far from the snake's native habitat; possibly this is due to its vague similarity to the large Asian pythons..

Geographic range

Found in tropical South America from Colombia and Venezuela south to Argentina.^[1] The word Anaconda is taken from Sinhalese language which is the Native Language of the Sri Lankans. The Pythons which are found in Sri Lankan jungles are some times quite large and the Sinhalese word "Hena Kandaya" which broadly means a Big Bodied Animal,possibly picked up by the British as Anaconda, who ruled Sri lanka for over 100 years.

Reproduction

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (August 2008)

Ovoviviparous, with females giving birth to live young.

Captivity

There have been very few instances of this species being bred in captivity. In October 2007, the New England Aquarium in Boston achieved a breakthrough when it was discovered that one of their females was gravid. Fourteen young were born on January 1, 2008.

Species

Species^[2]	Taxon author^[2]	Subsp.*^[2]	Common name	Geographic range^[1]
E. deschauenseei	Dunn & Conant, 1936	0	Dark-spotted anaconda	South America in northeastern Brazil and coastal French Guiana.
E. murinus	(Linnaeus, 1758)	1	green anaconda	South America in countries east of the Andes, including Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and on the island of Trinidad.
E. notaeus	Cope, 1862	0	Yellow anaconda	South America in eastern Bolivia, southern Brazil, Paraguay and northeastern Argentina. In Argentina it is found in the provinces of Corrientes, Chaco, Entre Rios, Formosa, Misiones and Santa Fe.

*) Not including the nominate subspecies.
) Type species.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Eunectes (TSN 209577). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 18 July 2008.
^ Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
^ The Search for the $50,000 Snake at MSN Encarta. Accessed 18 July 2008.
^ Splendor in the Mud: Unraveling the Lives of Anacondas by Carol Kaesuk Yoon, April 2, 1996, at New York Times. Accessed 18 July 2008.
^ Rivas JA, Ascanio RE, Muñoz MDC. 2008. What is the length of a snake? Comtemporary Herpetology, Vol. 2008(2):1-3. PDF at Comtemporary Herpetology. Accessed 18 July 2008.