Yellow anaconda

The yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus), also known as the Paraguayan anaconda,[1] is a boa species endemic to southern South America. It is one of the largest snakes in the world but smaller than its close relative, the green anaconda. Like all boas and pythons, it is non-venomous and kills its prey by constriction. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Yellow anaconda
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Boidae
Genus: Eunectes
Species:
E. notaeus
Binomial name
Eunectes notaeus
Cope, 1862
Synonyms

Etymology
Further information on etymology of generic name: Eunectes § Etymology

The Neo-Latin specific name notaeus derives from Ancient Greek: νωταίος, romanized: nōtaios, lit. 'dorsal' (νωταίος is a poetic form of νωτιαίος/nōtiaios). In distinguishing his new species Eunectes notaeus from Eunectes murinus, Edward Drinker Cope stated, "Dorsal scales are larger and in fewer rows."[2]

Description
Close-up of head, at the Reptilium Terrarium and Desert Zoo, Landau, Germany
In the Ohrada Zoo, Hluboká nad Vltavou, Czech Republic

Adults grow to an average of 3.3 to 4.4 m (10.8 to 14.4 ft) in total length. Females are generally larger than males,[3] and have been reported up to 4.6 m (15.1 ft) in length.[1][4] They commonly weigh 25 to 35 kg (55 to 77 lb), but specimens weighing more than 55 kg (121 lb) have been observed.[5] 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.[1]

Distribution and habitat

The range of the yellow anaconda encompasses the drainage of the Paraguay River and its tributaries, from the Pantanal region in Bolivia, Paraguay, and western Brazil to northeastern Argentina[6] and northern Uruguay.[7] [8] It prefers mostly aquatic habitats, including swamps, marshes, and brush-covered banks of slow-moving rivers and streams.[3] The species appears to have been introduced in Florida, although it is unknown whether the small population (thought to derive from escaped pets) is reproductive.[9]

Ecology

The yellow anaconda forages predominately in shallow water in wetland habitats. Most predation occurs from June to November, when flooding has somewhat subsided and wading birds are the most common prey. Observations and analysis of gut and waste contents from regularly flooded areas in the Pantanal region of southwestern Brazil indicate that they are generalist feeders that employ both ambush predation and wide-foraging strategies.

Their prey consists nearly exclusively of aquatic or semi-aquatic species, including a wide variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and eggs. Larger specimens can prey upon larger animals, such as brocket deer, capybaras or peccaries.[3] The prey-to-predator weight ratio is often much higher than for other types of Boidae.[10] Cannibalism has been observed in this species, though it is not clear how often this occurs.[11]

The yellow anaconda has few predators. Juveniles and the occasional adult may be taken by caimans, larger anacondas, jaguars, some canids such as the crab-eating fox, mustelids, and raptors. The species is also hunted by humans for its skin.[9]

Breeding

Female Yellow Anacondas release a pheromone which entices the males to breed. In the wild, multiple male Anacondas are known to attempt to breed with a single female at the same time. This activity is known as a breeding ball and it is most commonly associated with Garter Snakes.[12]

Interactions with humans
A yellow anaconda in the waterhole, at the Beardsley Zoo, Bridgeport, Connecticut

In captivity the species has a reputation for being unpredictable and somewhat dangerous to humans.[1][3] In the United States, the import, transportation and sale of the species across state lines were banned in 2012 to try to prevent the yellow anaconda from becoming an invasive species in areas such as the Florida Everglades.[13] The conservation status of the yellow anaconda has not been assessed by the IUCN.

References
  1. Mehrtens, John M. (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
  2. Cope, E. D. (1862). "Synopsis of the species of Holcosus and Ameiva, with diagnoses of new West Indian and South American Colubridae". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 14: 60–82. Synopsis of the species of Holcosus and Ameiva, with diagnoses of new West Indian and South American Colubridae at the Internet Archive.
  3. Colthorpe, Kelly (2009). "Eunectes notaeus". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  4. McKay, George; Cooke, Fred, eds. (2004). "Snakes: Reptiles". The Encyclopedia of Animals. 1. Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 397. ISBN 0520244060.
  5. Mendez, M.; Waller, T.; Micucci, P. A.; Alvarenga, E.; Morales, J. C. (2007). "Genetic population structure of the yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus) in Northern Argentina: management implications". In Henderson, Robert W.; Powell, Robert (eds.). Biology of the Boas and Pythons. Eagle Mountain, Utah: Eagle Mountain Publishing. pp. 405–415. ISBN 978-0972015431.
  6. Waller, T.; Micucci, P. A.; Alvarenga, E. (2007). "Conservation biology of the yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus) in Northeastern Argentina". In Henderson, Robert W.; Powell, Robert (eds.). Biology of the Boas and Pythons. Eagle Mountain, Utah: Eagle Mountain Publishing. pp. 340–362. ISBN 978-0972015431.
  7. Uetz, P.; Hallermann, J. (2018). "Eunectes notaeus COPE, 1862". The reptile database. Hamburg, Germany: Zoological Museum Hamburg. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  8. "Hay registros de anaconda amarilla (Eunectes notaeus) en el norte del país". La Mochila (in Spanish). 11 June 2010. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  9. "Eunectes notaeus". NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
  10. Strüssmann, Christine (1997). "Feeding habits of the yellow anaconda, Eunectes notaeus Cope, 1862, in the Brazilian Pantanal". Biociencias (in Portuguese). 5 (1): 35–52.
  11. Barros, M. M.; Draque, J. F.; Micucci, P. A.; Waller, T. (2011). "Eunectes notaeus (Yellow Anaconda). Diet / Cannibalism" (PDF). Herpetological Review. 42 (2): 290–291.
  12. "Yellow Anaconda Care Sheet". Reptile Range. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  13. Segal, Kim (17 January 2012). "U.S. bans imports of 4 exotic snake species". CNN.
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