Incredible moment world's largest SNAKE is discovered by TV crew with 7.8 meter beast as thick as a car tire filmed in water
The world's largest snake has been spotted lurking in the depths of the Amazon rainforest.
The beast weighs a whopping 200 kg, three times the weight of the average human, is 7.8 meters long and has a head as large as a human's.
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This Northern Green Anaconda was found by the television wild animals presenter Professor Freek Vonk remotely Brazil.
The colossal snake is much larger than the largest known species to date: the reticulated snake Pythonwhich averages 20ft 5ins in length.
Until now, only one species of Green Anaconda – also called the Giant Anaconda – has been recognized in the Amazon.
The Northern Green Anaconda was published in a study in the scientific Diversity magazine on February 16.
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Dutch biologist Professor Vonk, 40, was filmed swimming next to the enormous anaconda.
He said, “It was 26 feet long and weighed 440 pounds.”
He explained: “Along with fourteen other scientists from nine countries, we discovered that the largest snake species in the world is the green anaconda.
“As we all know from movies and stories about giant snakes – they are actually two different species.
“The green anacondas found in the north of their range South America – included VenezuelaSuriname and French Guiana – seem to belong to a completely different species.
“Although they look almost identical at first glance, the genetic difference between the two is 5.5% and that is huge.
“To put this in perspective, humans and chimpanzees are only genetically different by about 2%.”
Prof Vonk added: “We have given the new species the Latin name Eunectes akayima, the Northern Green Anaconda.
“The word 'akayima' comes from several indigenous languages in northern South America and means 'great snake'.”
Prof Vonk added: “You can see in the video the largest anaconda I have ever seen, as thick as a car tire, 7 meters long and weighing over 200 kg – with a head as big as my head.”
The TV biologist also described the effects of climate change on the region.
He added: “The Amazon is under severe pressure from climate change and ongoing deforestation.
“More than a fifth of the Amazon region has already disappeared, which is more than thirty times the area of the Netherlands.
“The survival of these iconic giant snakes is inextricably linked to the protection of their natural habitat.”
Bryan Fry, biologist at the University of Queensland and co-author of the study, said: “It's important, because the newly described northern green anaconda has a much smaller range than the southern one, and that means it is much more vulnerable.”
Professor Jesus Rivas, the lead author of the study, explained that they first realized that there was more than one species of green anaconda more than fifteen years ago.
Together with his wife Dr. Sarah Corey-Rivas, they began analyzing samples to look for genetic differences. However, it took until now for their findings to be published.
Professor Rivas said: “Sarah and I started working on this in 2007 when we first noticed that there was a big genetic difference between the Venezuelan samples and some samples from Peru.
“We then began collecting samples and collaborators across South America and beyond to complete the mosaic of samples that allowed us to piece together the study.
“I worked with several colleagues in different countries to collect the samples and Sarah did most of the heavy lifting, sequencing genes and carrying out the phylogenetic analysis.
“This was a truly international project, if you look at the list of authors of which there is one Belgiumone of Australiaone from the Netherlands, one from Colombiaone from Brazil, two out Boliviatwo of the USthree of Ecuadorand three from Venezuela.”
He stated: “I've been studying anacondas for 32 years, so this begs the question of how many other species there are that we don't know about.
“If such an iconic animal went unnoticed for so many years, what about the less noticeable and less studied animals and plants?
“This finding humbles the spirit when it comes to the true diversity of South America.”
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