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Scientist Jesús Rivas
looks for anacondas
by poking around in
murky swamp water
with his bare feet.
.' . • -
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Vocabulary
skeptical: not willing to believe
something without proof
prey: on onimol that is hunted and
eaten by other animals
suffocates: dies because of not
being able to breathe
transmitter: a device that sends
information electronically
biology: the science of how a living
thing lives, grows, and breeds
Up Close With
THE WORLD'S
BIGGEST SNAKE
For Jesús Rivas, wrestling a 17-foot-long
green anaconda is all part of a day's work.
The knee-deep water was
murky. Jesús Rivas waded
through the muck with bare
feet, using his toes to feel
what his eyes could not see.
Suddenly, he felt a huge,
muscular body twisting and
turning in the mud. For
most people, this would be
terrifying. But not for Rivas.
It was exactly what he was
looking for.
"I started crawling
around," remembers Rivas.
"I could feel the snake
getting thinner, so I knew
I was getting close to the
head." Perhaps a little too
close, as it turned out.
"The snake spun around
and bit me!" says Rivas.
"Then I knew where the
head was, of course—
attached to my shoulder."
The snake eventually let
go of Rivas's shoulder—and
then bit him on the hand.
But even though he was
bleeding. Rivas didn't give
up. He caught the giant
snake. It's something he has
done hundreds of times.
That's because Rivas is a
scientist who studies green
anacondas, the biggest
and heaviest snakes in the
world. Rivas loves these
animals. After he catches
one, he usually examines
it and then releases it back
into the wild. In fact, the
snake that bit him was one
he had caught before. He
had named it Marion.
has seen are 17 feet long.
But that is still huge—
especially since the snakes
also measured a foot across.
They weighed more than
200 pounds.
Supersize Snakes
On the Hunt
Green anacondas live in
the Amazon region of South
America. Rivas studies them
in the swamps of
Venezuela, but
they also live in
nearby countries,
like Brazil.
These snakes are
Anacondas spend most
of their time underwater.
The snakes' eyes are on top
of their heads. So they can
hide almost completely
big—really big. Some
people have reported
seeing anacondas that
are 32 feet long. Rivas is
skeptical about that,
since the largest
ones he
An anaconda can
unhinge its jaw
to swallow prey
bigger than itself.
underwater with their eyes
above the surface, waiting
for a meal to wander by.
When it is time to
dine, an anaconda coils
around its prey, squeezing
tightly until the animal
suffocates. Then the snake
swallows its meal whole.
For such a big creature, an
anaconda can move quickly
when it hunts. And a large
anaconda can eat almost
any animal it finds. That
includes deer and caimans,
reptiles related to alligators
and crocodiles.
"There are records of
snakes eating prey that are
160 percent of their body
weight," says Rivas. "So a
200-pound anaconda could
eat something that weighs
300 pounds—no problem."
Amazon Home
Anacondas and humans
don't often come face-to-face.
That's because most of these
snakes live underwater in
areas where few people go.
How many anacondas
are out there? Plenty, says
Rivas—anacondas number
in the thousands. But he
worries that there may be
problems in the future.
"It's an animal spread
throughout the Amazon,
and the Amazon is in
danger," he explains.
Large areas of the
Amazon wilderness are
being destroyed as farms
and homes are built. Rivas
notes that anacondas are at
the top of the food chain. If
their prey animals begin to
disappear, anacondas could
suffer as well.
More to Learn
Rivas began studying
anacondas in the late 1980s.
Since then, he has captured
more than 900 anacondas.
Sometimes he makes a snake
swallow a transmitter
before he releases it. That
way, he can follow the snake
to see where it goes, how
long it lives, and more.
Other times. Rivas has
brought anacondas into
captivity to study how these
snakes breed. Scientists still
have much more to find
out about the animals. "We
want to learn about their
biology, because that will
make us better prepared to
face any problems in the
future," he says.
So Rivas will continue
wading into crocodileinfested waters to find his
favorite snake. Has he ever
considered putting on shoes?
Not a chance. It's easier
to find anacondas with bare
feet, he says. Plus, he adds,
"if a croc bites you, the shoe
isn't going to be much help."
—Raven Snook
Yes, an Anaconda Can Eat That!
Believe it or not, all the creatures below can be prey
for anacondas. (Sizes can vary—these are examples.)
6 Scholastic Action | October 28, 2013
'Anacondas do not usually
prey on humons. But occording
to Rivos, it's possible.
By Irene Latham
Dressed in
a river's disguise,
V'^>
they coil
and hide,
eyes alert
to movement
I
of caiman
and capybara.
mm^^*ym
What do these
jungle giants think,
L
>*í
when they
become prey
'-f^^^^^t
for a scientist
wading the
Amazon
Compare and Contrasi
W^,
with no shoes
on his feet?
f^':m
'íeím-*--
Answers are in the Teacher's Guide.
Use the poem and the article "Up
Close With the World's Biggest
Snake" to answer the questions.
I» Both texts nnention aninnals
that are prey for anacondas.
Circle two exannples in each
text. Which animal or aninnals
are mentioned in both texts?
What is the author's purpose
for each text? Give two
examples from each text that
helped you understand the
author's purpose.
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