The Amazon Rainforest is home to the longest snake in the world, a monstrous beast measuring 26 feet in length and 440 pounds in weight.
Professor Freek Vonk, a wildlife broadcaster on television, discovered the Northern Green Anaconda, whose diameter is around the size of a car tire.
Even though the snake had a human-sized head, Professor Vonk, who is 40 years old, apparently had no fear about approaching close to it.
The Dutch biologist swims beside the gigantic anaconda in a breathtaking film.
Until now, the Amazon has only been home to one species of Green Anaconda, also known as the Giant Anaconda. A new study published in Diversity this month has confirmed the Northern Green Anaconda is a separate species.
With the help of fourteen other researchers from nine different nations, they found the monstrous specimen.
The genetic difference between the two is 5.5%, which is considerable, even though they appear nearly identical at first appearance. In context, there is just a 2% genetic difference between chimps and humans.
The Latin name for the new species, Eunectes Nakajima, means Northern Green Anaconda, and it was bestowed to it by the researchers.
According to the experts, the new species is already facing danger even though it was only recently found.
According to Professor Vonk, climate change and continued deforestation are putting severe pressure on the Amazon region. A staggering 30 times the area of the Netherlands has vanished, making up more than 20% of the Amazon. He said that preserving their natural habitat is inextricably linked to the survival of these iconic giant snakes.
The study’s principal author, Professor Jesus Rivas, said that more than fifteen years ago, he learned there was more than one kind of green anaconda.
He and his wife, Dr. Sarah Corey-Rivas, began analyzing samples for genetic variations. But they waited until today to release their results.
Sarah performed the bulk of the work, including gene sequencing and phylogenetic analysis, while he collaborated with colleagues from several nations to collect the samples.
If an iconic animal like the anaconda went undiscovered for so long, what about the less obvious and less studied ones?
