Eunectes
| Anacondas | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Green anaconda, E. murinus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Boidae |
| Subfamily: | Boinae |
| Genus: |
Eunectes Wagler, 1830 |
| Type species | |
|
Eunectes murinus (Linnaeus, 1758) |
|
| Synonyms | |
Boa Linnaeus, 1758
Draco Oken, 1816
Eunectes is a genus of boas found in tropical South America. They are an aquatic group of snakes and include one of the largest snakes in the world, E. murinus, the green anaconda. The name Eunectes is derived from the Greek word Eυνήκτης, which means "good swimmer". Four species are currently recognized.
Found in tropical South America from Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela south to Argentina.
All four species are aquatic snakes that prey on other aquatic animals, including fish, river fowl, caiman, and capybaras. Some accounts exist of anacondas preying on domestic animals such as goats that venture too close to the water.
While encounters between people and anacondas may be dangerous, they do not regularly hunt humans. Nevertheless, threat from anacondas is a familiar trope in comics, movies and adventure stories set in the Amazon jungle. Anacondas have also figured prominently in South American folklore, where they are sometimes depicted as shapeshifting mythical creatures called encantados. Local communities and some European explorers have given accounts of giant anacondas, legendary snakes of much greater proportion than any confirmed specimen.
Although charismatic, there is little known on the biology of wild anacondas. Most of our knowledge comes from the work of Dr. Jesus Rivas and his team working in the Venezuelan llanos.
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