List of largest snakes

The largest living snakes in the world, measured either by length or by weight, are various members of the boidae and pythonidae families. They include anacondas, pythons, and boa constrictors, which are all non-venomous constrictors. The longest venomous snake, with a length up to 18.5–18.8 ft (5.6–5.7 m), is the king cobra, and the heaviest venomous snake is likely to be the Gaboon viper (which also has the longest fangs and delivers the largest amount of venom) or possibly the Eastern diamondback rattlesnake – all three of which reach maximum weights in the range of 6–20 kilograms (13–44 lb).

There are ten living snakes, listed below according to their maximum known or reported mass, that have a maximum mass that may reach or exceed 50 pounds (23 kg). Pending the acceptance of its taxonomic status, the Bolivian python (Eunectes beniensis) may also merit inclusion, and the northern and southern variations of African rock python could be considered separately.

In terms of length, in addition to those listed here, there are two other species that may possibly reach a length of 20 feet (6.1 m) or more – the Oenpelli python (Morelia oenpelliensis) and the olive python (Liasis olivaceus) – however, the information available about those species is rather limited. The Oenpelli python, in particular, has been called the rarest python in the world, and there is only one known specimen legally held in captivity.

Snake

Snakes are elongated, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more joints than their lizard ancestors, enabling them to swallow prey much larger than their heads with their highly mobile jaws. To accommodate their narrow bodies, snakes' paired organs (such as kidneys) appear one in front of the other instead of side by side, and most have only one functional lung. Some species retain a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of the cloaca.

Living snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica, and on most smaller land masses — exceptions include some large islands, such as Ireland and New Zealand, and many small islands of the Atlantic and central Pacific. Additionally, sea snakes are widespread throughout the Indian and Pacific Oceans. More than 20 families are currently recognized, comprising about 500 genera and about 3,400 species. They range in size from the tiny, 10 cm-long thread snake to the reticulated python of up to 6.95 meters (22.8 ft) in length. The fossil species Titanoboa cerrejonensis was 13 meters (43 ft) long. Snakes are thought to have evolved from either burrowing or aquatic lizards, perhaps during the Jurassic period, with the earliest known fossils dating to between 143 and 167 Ma ago. The diversity of modern snakes appeared during the Paleocene period (c 66 to 56 Ma ago). The oldest preserved descriptions of snakes can be found in the Brooklyn Papyrus.

World

World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth or pertaining to anywhere on Earth.

In a philosophical context it may refer to:

In a theological context, world usually refers to the material or the profane sphere, as opposed to the celestial, spiritual, transcendent or sacred. The "end of the world" refers to scenarios of the final end of human history, often in religious contexts.

World history is commonly understood as spanning the major geopolitical developments of about five millennia, from the first civilizations to the present.

World population is the sum of all human populations at any time; similarly, world economy is the sum of the economies of all societies (all countries), especially in the context of globalization. Terms like world championship, gross world product, world flags etc. also imply the sum or combination of all current-day sovereign states.

Giant anaconda

Reports of giant anacondas date back as far as the European colonization of South America, when sightings of anacondas upwards of 50 meters (164 feet) began to circulate amongst colonists, and the topic has been a subject of debate ever since among cryptozoologists and zoologists. Anacondas are well-verified to grow to sizes of 5.21 metres (17.1 ft), and 97.5 kilograms (215 lb). In particular, the green or common anaconda is the heaviest and largest among all extant snakes in terms of robustness, and it is also the second-longest. The longest reputably-measured and confirmed anacondas are about 5.21 metres (17.1 feet) long. Lengths of 50–60 feet have been reported for this species, but such extremes lack verification. Some seemingly reliable claims that can be found describe measured anacondas ranging from 26 to 39 feet, although these remain unverified.

History

The first recorded sightings of giant anacondas were from the time of the discovery of South America, when early European explorers entered the dense jungles and claimed to have seen giant snakes measuring up to 18 metres (59.1 ft) long. Natives also reported seeing anacondas upwards of 10.5 metres (34.4 ft) to 18 metres (59.1 ft). Anacondas above 5 metres (16.4 ft) in length are rare. The Wildlife Conservation Society has, since the early 20th century, offered a large cash reward for live delivery of any snake of 9 metres (29.5 ft) or more in length, but the prize has never been claimed, despite the numerous sightings of giant anacondas. In a survey of 780 wild anacondas in Venezuela, the largest captured was 5 metres (16.4 ft) long. A specimen measured in 1944 exceeded this size when a petroleum expedition in Colombia claimed to have measured an anaconda which was 11.4 metres (37.4 ft) in length, but its claim has never been proven.

Red Sea

The Red Sea (also the Erythraean Sea) is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez (leading to the Suez Canal). The Red Sea is a Global 200 ecoregion. The sea is underlain by the Red Sea Rift which is part of the Great Rift Valley.

The Red Sea has a surface area of roughly 438,000 km² (169,100 mi²). It is about 2250 km (1398 mi) long and, at its widest point, 355 km (220.6 mi) wide. It has a maximum depth of 2211 m (7254 ft) in the central median trench, and an average depth of 490 m (1,608 ft). However, there are also extensive shallow shelves, noted for their marine life and corals. The sea is the habitat of over 1,000 invertebrate species, and 200 soft and hard corals. It is the world's northernmost tropical sea.

Extent

The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Red Sea as follows: