The Heaviest Snake In The World Weighs More Than The Average Football Player

In 2005 scientists in India uncovered the bones of a terrifying snake that was longer than a bus and potentially weighed as much as 2,200 pounds. Though it remains the largest snake to have ever existed, that particularly impressive specimen has been dead for roughly 47 million years. Today, we don't have bus-sized terror snakes to worry about, but there are plenty of snake species that can reach impressive sizes.

When it comes to the largest snakes in the world, the species that comes out on top depends on whether you're measuring length or weight, and even then it's difficult to confirm cited measurements. The reticulated python, which can reach more than 20 feet long, is the longest snake in the world. But the heaviest? That would be the green anaconda.

While reticulated pythons are often longer, they lack the bulk to match the green anaconda's overall heft. Until recently, there was thought to be just one species of green anaconda, but new research has not only revealed that there are two distinct species, it has seemingly confirmed the largest snake in the world belongs to the newly designated northern green anaconda species. It might not be the prehistoric bus-sized monster uncovered in India, but this newly discovered specimen, found in the Brazilian rainforest, could comfortably outweigh even the bulkiest football player.

Historically, there were thought to be four different species of anaconda: the yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus), bolivian anaconda (Eunectes beniensis), dark-spotted anaconda (Eunectes deschauenseei), and green anaconda (Eunectes murinus). Green anacondas live in tropical ecosystems and is one of many deadly animals that reside in rainforests. This species of snake lives in swamps, marshes, streams, and rivers and has therefore evolved so that its eyes and nasal passages are on top of its head. This allows anacondas to sit quietly in the water waiting for prey to emerge. Though they aren't venomous, green anacondas are constrictors, which means they can use every bit of their impressive weight to squeeze the life out of their prey.

Now, researchers have discovered there are actually two distinct species of green anaconda: northern green anaconda and southern green anaconda. Professor of Toxicology at The University of Queensland, Bryan Fry, led a team in investigating samples from all anaconda species from across the nine countries where the snake exists. After almost 20 years, the researchers published their findings in the journal Diversity, revealing that the green anaconda is actually two genetically distinct species which, although they look almost identical, are 5.5% different genetically (for context, humans and chimps have a 2% percent genetic difference) What's more, one of these newly designated species can now claim to have produced the world's heaviest snake.

Previously, National Geographic listed the green anaconda as the largest snake in the world, noting that the species can grow to more than 29 feet and weigh more than 550 pounds, but these were merely estimates. Now, scientists have actually encountered the largest snake ever known.

Fry and his team of scientists discovered the world's heaviest snake while filming for National Geographic's series "Pole to Pole." Named Ana Julia, the reptile was found in Brazil's Formoso River in an area named Bonito. This 26-foot-long snake weighed roughly 440 pounds and, according to reports, its head was the size of a human's.

This giant snake belonged to the newly-classified northern green anaconda species (Eunectes akayima), which when compared to its southern counterpart, exists in a smaller range and is therefore more rare. Sadly, Ana Julia was found dead weeks after it was initially discovered, and the cause of death was undetermined, though some reports claimed the snake had been shot.

Interestingly enough, Fry told ABC News that there could well be even bigger specimens in the South American rainforest, saying, "There are anecdotal reports from the Waorani people of other anacondas in the area measuring more than 7.5 meters (25 feet) long and weighing around 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds)." Such a snake would undeniably be the heaviest ever recorded in the modern era, but finding them may prove difficult due to the fact that green anacondas spend most of their lives submerged in water. Still, there are almost certainly larger examples of these jungle giants out there somewhere, and the northern green anaconda can now officially be labelled as the heaviest snake species in the world.