A green anaconda entering the water in Los Lianos, Venezuela. Photo by slowmotiongli / iStock.com.
The green anaconda is one massive snake. In fact, weighing in at 227 kg (550 lb.), it is the heaviest snake in the world! It is also one of the longest snakes in the world, measuring as long as 8.8 m (29 ft.).
Native to South America, the green anacondas live in swamps, marshes and streams.
Adapted to the Water
Their enormous size makes it much easier for green anacondas to swim in the water than to slither slowly on land.
A green anaconda sticking its head out of the water. Photo by nikicruz / iStock.com.
Their eyes and nostrils are situated on the top of their head allowing them to see and breathe while most of their body is under water.
Tree Climbers
Though they spend most of their time in the water, green anacondas also can be found in trees.
When they hunt from trees, they drop down from the branches to surprise their prey.
Green anacondas drop down from trees to surprise prey. Photo by phototrip / iStock.com.
What Green Anacondas Eat
Green anacondas prey on a variety of animals including fish, birds, tapirs, wild pigs, capybaras, and caimans (reptiles similar to alligators). They’ve even been known to eat jaguars.
How Green Anacondas Hunt
Green anacondas use both sight and smell to hunt. But 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.
Green anacondas are not venomous. They use constriction (or squeezing) to suffocate or crush their prey. Photo by slowmotiongli / iStock.com.
Once firmly grasped, the anaconda will coil around the prey and squeeze it until it dies of crushing or suffocation. It will then consume the carcass whole.
For larger prey, the green anaconda can stretch its mouth very wide to fit around the body. After a big meal, anacondas can go weeks without eating again.
Green anacondas have also been known to partake in cannibalism. Females, the larger of the sexes, have been reported to eat smaller male anacondas.
Green Anaconda Reproduction
Green anacondas spend most of their time alone. However, between April and May, males seek out females for the opportunity to mate.
Often times, multiple males will pursue the same female. This results in “breeding balls” of up to a dozen males wrapped around a single female, all attempting to mate. The breeding ball can last up to 4 weeks.
Once pregnant, the female will produce eggs inside her body. The eggs develop for 8-12 weeks and then hatch while still inside the mother’s body. She then gives birth to as many as 80 baby snakes, or snakelets, each 30-60 cm (12-24 in.) in length.
Green anacondas can live over 10 years in the wild. They can live up to 30 in captivity.
Green anacondas, the world’s heaviest snake, can live over 10 years in the wild. Photo by slowmotiongli / iStock.com.
Conservation Status
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.
Another threat they face is habitat destruction. Despite this they are considered a species of least concern by the IUCN Red List.
Green Anaconda Range
The green anaconda is native to South America, making its home in swamps, marshes and streams.
More Anaconda Resources
- Vancouver Aquarium’s Green Anaconda Page
- Sea World’s Green Anaconda Page
- National Geographic’s Green Anaconda Page
- Extreme Science’s Anaconda Page
- National Zoo: Green Anaconda
Quick Fact Sheet
Common Name(s): Green Anaconda
Scientific Name: Eunectes murinus
Animal Type: reptile
Size: Up to 8.8 m (29 ft.)
Weight: 227 kg (550 lb.)
Lifespan: 10 years
Conservation Status: Least Concern
