What is longer than an anaconda or a reticulated boa constrictor? Top largest snakes

Snakes are fascinating creatures that help maintain the overall balance of nature throughout the world. They are divided by shape, size, type, origin and other criteria, you can be convinced of this by looking at our rating. But the world we live in is obsessed with size, and it is the size of snakes that is often exaggerated by movie makers. The anacondas that are shown in popular films are just a figment of the imagination, acting as a punch line. Eyewitness accounts are rarely documented and people are left to rely on indisputable facts. Here is the list of 10 the most long snakes in the world.

10. Diamondback rattlesnake

Scientific name: Crotaleus adamantuesOrigin: USAMaximum length: 2.5 meters

The diamondback rattlesnake is native to the southeastern United States and is the heaviest rattlesnake in the United States. The snake's coloring includes shades of brown and olive in addition to the diamond-shaped spots that run across the reptile's body. On the snake's belly you can find dark, pale yellow patches on the sides. The snake has a stripe on its head that runs from the back of its eye to its mouth. This species of snake prefers coastal areas and can be found along the peninsula of Florida and North Carolina. The most long snake was discovered in 1946, its length reached 2.5 meters, and its weight was 15 kilograms. The average size The diamondback rattlesnake is much smaller. Thus, some species reach from 1.1 to 1.7 meters in length.

9. Eastern indigo snake

Scientific name: Dymarchon couperiOrigin: Eastern USAMaximum length: 2.8 meters

The Eastern Indigo Snake is one of the longest snakes found in the United States. Its scales are black and blue in color, and the pattern can be either longitudinal or transverse. The snake's name comes from the color of its shiny scales, which appear black and red in bright light. The average length of such a snake reaches 1.2-2.3 meters, while the longest snake, according to scientists, reached 2.8 meters in length.

8. Black Mamba

Scientific name: Dendroaspis polylepis Origin: Sub-Saharan Africa Maximum length: 4.5 meters

The black mamba is the largest poisonous snake in Africa. Its name is explained by the color of its scales, which is no different from the colors of other snakes, except for the lower part of the mouth, which is painted black. Juveniles are lighter in color, but tend to darken over time. The species can be found in a variety of topographical regions such as dense forests, mountainous slopes and deserts, with the black mamba preferring regions with continental climate for arranging a den. This is one of the fastest crawling snakes, capable of traveling 12 kilometers per hour. It comes in different sizes, reaching 2 meters in length if it is an adult, and 4.5 meters if it is a fully formed snake.

7. Light tiger python

Scientific name: Python molurusOrigin: South and Southeast AsiaMaximum length: 4.6 meters

The light tiger python is a large non-venomous snake. In nature, there are two subspecies of this type of snake: the dark tiger python and the light tiger python. A distinctive feature of these two subspecies is their colors. The light tiger python has a lighter coloration. Python scale colors include white or yellow various shades, from beige to rich brown. Coloring of pythons living in Western Ghats, darker than those that live on the Deccan Plateau and on East Coast. In Pakistan, these pythons reach 2.4-3 meters in length, and in India, several pythons over 3 meters in length have been found. Longest snake reaches 4.6 meters in length and weighs 52 kilograms.

6. Boa constrictor/Common boa

Scientific Name: Boa ConstrictorOrigin: Central America and CaribbeanMaximum length: 5.5 meters

This is one of those rare cases when the scientific name of a reptile coincides with the generally accepted one. The boa constrictor is a large, heavy-bodied snake from the constrictor family. It is often chosen as an exhibit for personal collections or exhibitions. Scientists have discovered a dozen species of boa constrictor with completely different colors. The coloration of the boa constrictor varies depending on the region where it lives, but this snake is often creamy-brown in color with brown and reddish patches, especially noticeable at the tip of the tail. The boa constrictor is of medium size compared to the reticulated and dusky tiger pythons, and its length usually varies between 1-3.8 meters, with females usually larger than males, especially those living in captivity. Varieties reaching 5.5 meters in length have also been discovered.

5. King Cobra

Scientific name: Ophiophagus HannahOrigin: AsiaMaximum length: 5.7 meters

King cobra is longest venomous snake in the world. It primarily lives in tropical forests, as well as in India and Southeast Asia. Although this snake generally avoids humans, its bite is fatal and the venom is completely absorbed within 15 minutes of the bite. An interesting fact is that cobras are born with venom and fangs, so they are able to protect themselves from a very young age. They live quite a long time, considering that some of them live up to 30 years. The king cobra can reach 5.7 meters in length and weigh about 9 kilograms.

4. Hieroglyphic python

Scientific name: Python sebaeOrigin: AfricaAverage length: 6 meters

The hieroglyphic python is one of 11 known species of the genus Python family. This is a large non-venomous snake that lives in the Western, Central and Southern parts African continent. This snake can be found in a variety of places, including swamps and deserts, but typically lives near water sources. This snake has a deadly predatory instinct and kills its victims by constricting them with its body. This type of snake often kills and feeds on animals such as antelopes and crocodiles. Females protect future offspring and sometimes even closely monitor young individuals, which is quite rare among reptiles. The size of the snake may vary depending on its habitat. Thus, in more densely populated regions, the snake does not reach large sizes, and females are usually larger than males. Adults grow up to 3.5-4 meters in length, and especially large varieties reach 6 meters in length.

3. Green Anaconda/Common Anaconda

Scientific name: Eunectes murinusOrigin: South AmericaMaximum length: 7 meters

The scientific name of anaconda is a combination of Greek and Latin word to denote a good swimmer and an animal that eats mice, since anacondas are thought to primarily feed on mice. This species of snake is best known as green anaconda. This non-venomous snake is considered one of the largest, heaviest and longest snake species in existence. The color of the snake is an olive background with black spots along the entire length of the body. The snake's head is smaller than its body and has orange and yellow identifying stripes on either side of the head. Females are usually larger than males, with the heaviest snake weighing up to 283 kilograms. This species of snake reaches 4.6 meters in length, but some subspecies are much longer. According to some reports, this snake can reach 12 meters in length, but there is little evidence of this fact.

2. Amethyst Python

Scientific name: Morelia amethystinaOrigin: Indonesia, AustraliaMaximum length: 8.5 meters

It is the largest snake in Australia and also the most favorite reptile among snake lovers due to its size and colors. There are several subspecies of the Amethyst family, the most popular of which is Morelia amethystina. The snake's scientific name comes from the iridescent tint on its scales, giving the snake its amethyst color. These snakes prefer moist and warm habitats. A large number of Amethyst pythons have been spotted in scrub and forested areas of Indonesia and Australia. Typically, the size of the snake varies between 2 and 4 meters, but some snakes reach 6 meters in length. Although the evidence is insufficient, there is evidence that this species of snake can reach 8.5 meters in length.

1. Reticulated Python

Scientific name: Python Reticulatus Origin: Asia Maximum length: 12.2 meters

The longest snake in the world. Reticulated pythons are excellent swimmers, and their scientific name comes from the Latin word reticulates, meaning “reticulated,” to refer to the reticulated pattern of this species of snake. These snakes usually live in tropical forests and grasslands near water sources. The coloring of the snake helps it camouflage well under dry leaves or tree debris. This species lives in Southeast Asia, and is one of the longest, but not the heaviest snakes on the planet. Like all pythons, this species is non-venomous and does not pose a threat to human life. The size of the snake varies, with varieties of the reticulated python found in Sumatra reaching 1.5-6.5 meters if it is an adult, and the weight of such a python is about 84 kilograms. This species was listed in the Guinness Book of Records after the Medusa snake, which reached 7.5 meters in length at an early age and later grew to 10 meters, reaching a weight of 181 kilograms.

Traditionally, snakes have a bad reputation among people. They hypnotize, suppress, terrify. They can smell you or hear you tens of meters away, creep up unnoticed and attack. What then? Some people think that there are snakes that can swallow a person whole.

This is, of course, not true. Of course, some snakes can poison you with the first bite, others can strangle you, but none of them are capable of swallowing a person. It is unlikely that this will console an already dead person, but still, there is one less reason for fear. On the other hand, the largest snake in the world can be truly dangerous. And beautiful.

The largest snake that ever lived on the planet is the extinct giant Titanoboa. If you divide its name into two parts, you get “titan” and “boa” - titanic snake. And she is truly titanic.

The average individual of this species reached 15 meters in length. For comparison, this is more height five-story buildings. It was about a meter in girth. The weight of this monster was about a ton.

This is what Titanoboa looked like - the largest snake in the world

Fortunately (or unfortunately), this monster has long since died out. The giant snake lived in the Paleocene era, when dinosaurs had already become extinct and did not compete with it. Mammals were just beginning to develop. As a result, there was a lot of food on land, but clearly not enough from predators. It’s hard to believe, but small hippos could serve as food for this titan. She did not possess poison, but she could strangle anyone.

Today's snakes, compared to Titanoboa, no longer seem so huge, but still, they can scare anyone when they meet.

It is believed that this is the largest snake currently alive. The length of an adult python under favorable circumstances can reach 6-7 meters.

Not long ago, information appeared about a python found in the Philippines, the length of which was 14.85 meters. This would be a real discovery, but in reality the python turned out to be almost half the size. Of course, 7 meters for a snake is an impressive result, but this is not the limit. Therefore in this moment The champion is considered to be the reticulated python from Indonesia, whose length is 12.2 meters. Imagine a standard five-story Khrushchev building. From ground to roof, the total height is 13.75 meters. If you put this snake on the tip of its tail and lift it up, it will only reach the roof by one and a half meters.

This snake is called differently: giant anaconda, aka green anaconda, aka common anaconda, she is also a water boa... On average, representatives of this species reach a length of 5-6 meters, but the most big snakes may be 8-9 meters. And in the eastern part of Colombia lives a snake that has grown to 11.43 meters in length.

Anaconda is the champion in the number of myths. It is with her that most eyewitness accounts and rumors are associated. 15 meters, 18 meters, even 25 meters - it seems incredible. Biologists argue that even 12 meters for an anaconda is a wasteful use of resources. Of course, it’s unlikely that anyone will dare to attack such a carcass, but it’s also not easy to feed it.

It just so happens that most of the largest snakes on the planet are not poisonous. It is the small and weak who need to act with cunning and deceit, including poison. The big ones can act from a place of strength.

This type of python is somewhat shorter than those listed before, but the average 4-5 meters for it is really a lot. And yet, even this is not the limit. Baby Python from a safari park in Illinois was measured in 2005. It turned out that its length is 7.4 meters.

Indian python

The Indian or tiger python takes an honorable fourth place. This large snake is smaller in size than its companions, but people know it better than others. And it’s not surprising, because its bright golden-brown color is hard not to remember. This snake is relatively calm and inactive, apparently due to this they are most often kept in circuses and zoos. Some lovers of unusual animals even keep them at home. If you wish, you can buy such a baby snake, because they reproduce well in captivity.

The length of these snakes is also memorable: up to 4-5 meters on average, but in some cases they can be even longer.

Finally, the numerous subspecies of pythons and boa constrictors have ended, and someone else has appeared on the list. The king cobra is the largest venomous snake on earth. It seems that the length of 4-5 or even 5.5 meters was not enough for her; she also decided to acquire poisonous fangs. The largest recorded representative of this species grew to 5.71 meters at the time of measurement. And, considering that snakes grow until the end of their lives, albeit with at different speeds, this record may increase.

The venom of this snake is deadly to humans, although only one out of ten bites leads to death. In most cases, she makes idle attacks and even bites, trying to scare away rather than kill. In addition, in India, where these snakes are common, vaccines are available in all hospitals. Thanks to this, death from king cobra attacks is quite rare in India, despite the fact that they claim the lives of 50 thousand people every year.

Black Mamba

If you ask a resident of Africa which snake scares him the most, he will answer without hesitation - the black mamba. It is relatively small, rarely exceeding 4.5 meters in length. But what she lacks in growth she makes up for with other qualities: speed, surprise, and the power of poison. In one bite, it can inject a person with up to 400 milligrams of poison, while lethal dose– 10-15. If the vaccine is not administered within a few minutes, it means death.

It is she, and not the king cobra, that is considered the most dangerous snake on the planet. More than 20 thousand people die from its bites every year.

Bushmaster

Half of our rating was occupied by non-venomous snakes that prefer to grab and strangle, but the second was poisonous. And the bushmaster is the largest poisonous snake South America. In fact, it is very large and poisonous viper, but, unlike those that live in Russia, this one may well kill you. Its length is about 4 meters, which is not too much, but you wouldn’t want to meet it in the jungle. And although the mortality rate from its bites does not exceed 12%, quite a lot of people die every year.

A huge snake may not eat you, but it can poison you or strangle you. Therefore, it is best to observe them through the glass of a terrarium or, even better, on the Internet. It will be safer that way.

The world's largest snakes don't have to be venomous or life-threatening, but most modern people they are still more afraid of them than of any other living creatures on the planet. We all relate to snakes differently: some keep them as pets, others see the meaning of their lives in them and associate them with them professional activity, someone fears them more than death. The last category, regardless of age, courage and views on these creatures, includes most of the inhabitants of our planet. Rest assured that everyone will feel a shiver in their body when meeting the largest species of snakes on the planet by weight!

We invite you to take a look at the TOP 10, which contains the most large snakes in the world, capable of terrifying even the most fearless with their size and appearance.

10. Large water python (Apodora papuana) up to 22.5 kg

Greater water python (Papuan olive python) is a unique snake that is the only representative of the genus Apodora. Gentoo pythons feed on small mammals and medium-sized relatives, and their color has a characteristic olive tint, regardless of their habitat. With their average dimensions, these reptiles are no larger than ordinary pythons, but several record-breaking specimens (the largest of them had a body length of 4.78 meters and weighed more than 22.5 kilograms) allowed them to take last place in our ranking of the largest snakes in the world. The average specimen of this species has a body length from 1.5 to 4 meters and weighs between 18-20 kilograms.

9. Deschauensei's anaconda (Eunectes deschauenseei) up to 30 kg

Anaconda Deschauensei or "dark anaconda" – giant reptile, living most of its life under water or on its surface. An adult has a body up to two meters long and weighs up to 30 kilograms. Such proportions of its body not only surprise people, but also make this snake an ideal hunter with high muscle strength, reaction and speed. The voracity of the dark anaconda is surprising: it can eat everything it comes across, from fish and turtles to chickens and piglets. The peculiarity of this species of snake is that it was found exclusively in Bolivia, in swampy and sparsely populated regions, which is why practically nothing is known about the Deschauensei anaconda.

8. Amethyst python (Morelia amethistina) up to 30 kg

Amethyst pythons from Australia have become part of the list of the largest snakes in the world thanks to their amazing body size. According to unconfirmed reports, these snakes reach a length of 8.5 meters. The average representative of the genus grows up to 3.5-4 meters and weighs up to 30 kilograms. These snakes are not poisonous, but are excellent hunters, catching its prey at night, thanks to its quick reaction and powerful grip, leaving no chance for its victims. Unpretentiousness in nutrition and good tolerance to captivity make this snake an excellent pet, which has attracted the attention of many lovers of large reptiles around the world.

7. up to 40 kg

The list of the largest snakes in the world would be incomplete without an exotic yellow anaconda, which has a body length from 3 to 5 meters or more and weighs up to 40 kilograms. Habitat: swamps and swamps of South America. Thanks to the coloring appropriate for their place of residence, yellow (Paraguayan) anacondas are ideal hunters who will not go hungry. The glands of the snake are not poisonous, which is why it has to curl around the victim, immobilizing it and making it impossible to breathe. The large size of this species of snake allows them to hunt caimans, fish, turtles and even deer!

6. up to 45 kg

Common boa constrictor It is considered not only one of the longest snakes, but also ranks sixth in the ranking with the largest snakes on the planet. We have all seen boas in pictures, films or encyclopedias at least once in our lives. The deceptive appearance of the reptile does not negate the fact that it is an ideal killer, having a unique technology for killing its victim. Unlike most other representatives of its genus, the common boa constrictor squeezes the victim and waits until it exhales all the air, after which it squeezes chest even stronger to avoid re-inhalation. In nature, there are recorded representatives of boas with a body length of up to 5.5 meters and a weight of up to 45 kg. The habitat of this snake extends throughout South and Central America.

5. Indian python (Python molurus) up to 52 kg

Indian python– big and beautiful snake. Amazing bright color and life expectancy (up to 25 years) made it a target for many smugglers and exotic connoisseurs, causing the population of this species to plummet in last years. In addition, there are rumors that snake skin has healing properties and can cure many diseases. Weight Limit these snakes reach 52 kilograms, and the longest individuals, according to eyewitnesses, reached a body length of up to 6 meters, which allows them to hunt not only small mammals, but even small ones wild boars, jackals and other animals.

4. up to 55 kg

Compared to other largest snakes in the world, hieroglyphic (African) pythons They have a relatively short body length, but surprise with their weight, which can reach 55 kilograms. main feature This weighty predator is completely versatile, thanks to which it is able to climb trees, hunt in daylight and in complete darkness, swim in the water, sit in ambush or catch up with prey, and hunt in any other conditions. Unlike most of the large snakes described in the rating, this python has an extremely aggressive character, and a direct collision with it was fatal for most people.

3. up to 160 kg

Among the largest snakes by weight reticulated python ranks third in the world. It is believed that this species is the heaviest and longest of all snakes living on the planet. This species is found in tropical forests and on mountain slopes and is quite aggressive in nature. Life expectancy is 20 years. Reticulated pythons are a favorite among exotic pet advocates. The great attention paid to snakes by smugglers causes significant damage to their population. Official data show specimens reaching 7.5 meters in length, but many residents of Southeast and South Asia claim to have seen reticulated pythons up to 12 meters.

2. up to 182 kg

Burmese python takes second place in the ranking and was only a meter and a half short of becoming the most big snake in the world. Known representatives of this species reached a length of 5.7 meters and weighed more than 180 kilograms. Their habitat is mainly in Southeast Asia, where pythons find refuge in lakes and swamps, forests and meadows, and even river valleys. Like most of the world's largest snakes, Burmese pythons have a special method of searching for prey and hunting, which consists of using special receptors. The snake kills its victim with the help of incredible muscle strength, which allows it to compress its heavy body around its victim, leaving it no chance to slip out and run away.

1. Green Anaconda (Eunectes murinus) up to 227 kg

Even the largest snakes in the world are in the background gigantic green anaconda become harmless creatures! This reptile confidently wins the ranking thanks to individual specimens that (according to National Geographic magazine) have a body up to 9 meters long and weigh up to 227 kilograms. Incredible physical characteristics make the green anaconda a fearsome predator for various birds, reptiles and mammals. Remarkable fact that there is only one creature that can cope with an anaconda - the spectacled caiman, however, this battle does not always bring victory to the crocodile. Its impressive size, enormous weight, ability to hold its breath under water and terrifying appearance prove: the green anaconda has rightfully received the title of the largest snake in the world by weight, currently living on the planet.

Titanoboa (Titanoboa cerrejonensis) more than 1 ton

If we take into account the reptiles that have ever existed on Earth, then the largest in the world, both in weight and in length, can be considered Titanoboa. This ancient look boa constrictors, which became extinct more than 58 million years ago. Presumably, they grew up to 13 meters and weighed more than 1 ton.