Titanaboa update
Great Snakes: the slither continues…
While having some brief down-time and browsing some crypto blogs I came upon the above photo (click on image to enlarge). The caption translated follows (the original photograph has it written on the back):
“This is a ‘jiboia’ snake of which only part appears. It has approximately 48 meters and was found on the ‘Jari’ Lake, Pará state, where some people say there are no Big Snakes. On 11/10/1949″.
The photo is authentic but there is no way to accurately judge the size of the snake. 48 meters sounds impossibly huge… but even if it was half that size, it would be an absolute monster!
www.strangeark.com states the photo was originally published in April 28, 1949, in Brazilian newspaper… “The snake was alleged 45 meters, and was found on the Rio Abuna.”
A photographer has commented that the snake could be very close to the camera and its apparent size could very well be be just a perspective trick.
It’s nice to imagine it’s real anyway… in the relative safety of my house in ‘snakeless’ New Zealand.
Croc-swallowing monster exists!
At last, tangible proof has surfaced that giant snakes do exist (at least they did, once). A snake so huge it could swallow a crocodile in one gulp.
Remains from no less than eight giant snakes have been unearthed in a coal mine in Colombia. Aptly named ‘Titanoboa‘, researchers estimate (from the size of its vertebrae) that it was 15 metres long, a metre wide and weighed well over a tonne.
To put the size of this monster in perspective… The giant snake from the cheesy B-grade horror flick ‘Anaconda’ was 40-foot long. Titanoboa is 5 foot longer!
Are Titanoboas slithering around South Africa today? Researchers estimate the snakes lived over 60-million years ago. Meh. I have more faith that Elvis is alive (and is presently finishing a Sudoku puzzle on Mars) than in inconclusive dating methods. But I digress. Truth of the matter is that in recent history there have been , and still are, numerous eyewitness accounts of gargantuan snakes.
For me, I like to believe they are still around… at least from a distance.
Click here to read another post on giant snakes which you’ll find extremely interesting (if not unsettling).
What to do if attacked by a giant snake
2. Lie flat on the ground. Put your arms tight against your sides, your legs tight against one another.
3. Tuck your chin in.
4. The snake will begin to nudge and climb over your body.
5. Do not panic.
6. After the snake has examined you, it will begin to swallow you from the feet end – always from the feet end. Permit the snake to swallow your feet and ankles. Do not panic!
7. The snake will now begin to suck your legs into its body. You must lie perfectly still. This will take a long time.
8. When the snake has reached your knees slowly and with as little movement as possible, reach down, take your knife and very gently slide it into the side of the snake’s mouth between the edge of its mouth and your leg, then suddenly rip upwards, killing the snake.
9. Be sure you have your knife.
10. Be sure your knife is sharp.
Great Snakes!
Which brings me to tonight’s post… giant snakes.
Giant snakes frequent world mythology, and they say that myths and legends always had their origins in truth. What many of you wouldn’t know, is that giant snakes could easily exist today.
Humans have a certain adult size. Once we become adults, we stop growing. Snakes, on the other hand, continue to grow well after adulthood. This means that potentially giant snakes could very well exist, if they are old enough. Fortunately, most snakes could never grow to mammoth proportions because their internal organs would crush under their own weight. However, a giant snake that spent most of its time in the water could survive.
The popular B-grade Anaconda movies have made the world’s largest snake popular in recent years. In reality, there are many sightings every year of snakes which are much bigger than the biggest recorded anaconda. Since the anaconda is a primarily water-dwelling snake, perhaps the movies are not as far-fetched as we think?
If giant snakes did exist, where is the photographic evidence? Funny you should ask… How could 125,000 gorillas remain undiscovered in the Congo until recently? I prove my point.
A few concluding points…
1. Fossils of giant snakes have been found which are unbelievably huge.
2. Giant snake tracks are almost impossible to fake (not like Bigfoot prints) and many tracks showing enormous proportions have been found in very remote places.
3. I’m sure you’ll will find the youtube clip below rather interesting.
Sweet dreams.
