The Secret of the Brazilian Amazon - Anaconda

 
The sucuri, also known as anaconda, is a South American snake of the family Boidae, belonging to the genus Eunectes. It has the reputation of being a huge and very dangerous snake. 

 
There are four species, of which the first three occur in Brazil: 

•  Eunectes notaeus, the smallest and endemic sucuri-yellow of the Pantanal area. 
• Eunectes murinus, the largest and most well known of all species, occurring in flooded areas of the cerrado and Amazon region. In this last biome, animals usually reach larger sizes.
• Eunectes deschauenseei, the succulent-spotted, endemic of the Island of Marajó. 
• Eunectes beniensis, the sucuri-da-bolivia. 

 
Sucuri shares with the Reticulated Piton (Python reticulatus), the largest snake in the world, reaching an incredible 9 meters in length, although its adult individuals, on average, reach around 6 meters. An Anaconda can live in peace for up to 30 years. They exhibit sexual dimorphism being the female greater than the male, and reaches sexual maturity by the age of six years. 

There are many narratives about the attacks of these snakes on humans; however, most cases are fictitious, especially with regard to the actual size of the animal. Many admit to being attacked by species over 10 meters. In fact, the largest sucuri that is recorded by reliable source is 11 meters and 65 centimeters and was found by Marshal Candido Rondon in the early twentieth century.