Eunectes notaeus
| Yellow Anacondas | |
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| Conservation status | |
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NE
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Boidae |
| Subfamily: | Boinae |
| Genus: | Eunectes |
| Species: | E. notaeus |
| Binomial name | |
| Eunectes notaeus Cope, 1862 |
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| Synonyms | |
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- Common names: yellow anaconda, Paraguayan anaconda.[2]
Eunectes notaeus is a nonvenomous boa species found in South America. No subspecies are currently recognized.[3]
Contents |
[edit] Description
Adults are not as large as the green anaconda, E. murinus, but nevertheless grow to an average of 10 to 12 feet (3.0 to 3.7 m) in length. The maximum size is almost certainly larger.[2] Females are larger than males.
The color pattern consists of a yellow, golden-tan or greenish-yellow ground color overlaid with a series of black or dark brown saddles, blotches, spots and streaks.[2]
[edit] Habitat
This species prefers mostly aquatic habitats, including swamps, marshes, and brush-covered banks of slow-moving rivers and streams.
[edit] Feeding
These snakes were studied in regularly flooded areas in the Pantanal region of southwestern Brazil. The data collected were directly observed from predatory instances, analysis and examination of gut and waste contents, and affirmations by local residents and other researchers. These studies indicate the species is a generalist feeder. The prey list analyzed and other evidence suggests E. notaeus employs both "ambush predation" and "wide-foraging" strategies. The snakes forage predominately in open, flooded habitats, in relatively shallow water; most predation instances occur from June to November, when flooded areas have noticeably dried out, with wading birds being the most common prey. They have also been known to prey on fish, turtles, small-sized caimans, lizards, birds' eggs, small mammals and fish carrion. The prey to predator weight ratio is often much higher than those known for other types of Boidae.[4]
[edit] Captivity
As captives, they have a reputation for being unpredictable.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ 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 Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
- ^ "Eunectes notaeus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=634803. Retrieved 3 July 2008.
- ^ Strussmann, C (1997-06). "Feeding habits of the yellow anaconda, Eunectes notaeus Cope, 1862, in the Brazilian Pantanal". Biociencias 5 (1): 35–52.. http://md1.csa.com/partners/viewrecord.php?requester=gs&collection=ENV&recid=4295289&q=anaconda+the+snake&uid=793163738&setcookie=yes. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Eunectes notaeus |
- Eunectes notaeus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 4 July 2008.
