I hesitate to post any photos without the permission of the photographer, but I do have a couple that I have been given second-hand permission to post. These two photos are of the same anaconda and one can immediately see that this is without a doubt E. beniensis.

In the head photo, it is quite apparent that the oculars and supralabials are in contact and not separated by suborbital scales as in E. murinus. In the larger body photo, the ground color is olive brown with greatly extended lateral markings that are all solid in color with no lighter colored centers. This is a classic example of E. beniensis. I would estimate the length of this snake at around 10 feet.

I had a photo many years ago, that was lost in a computer crash, of a beniensis that was about 12 feet that was captured in northern Bolivia. It was the largest example of beniensis that I have actually seen to date. There were 4 guys holding it stretched out and the caption was just anaconda from north Bolivia. I don't believe they were aware that it was anything other than a green anaconda, but it was identical to the one in these attached photos. There was no doubt about it's identification. If you picture search the web under Beni anaconda or Bolivia anaconda you can see some of the pictures of E. beniensis that are out there. Be careful however, because a large number of them are of E. murinus so you will need to look closely for proper identification. I think the reason that most of photos are of smaller individuals is that they are being caught in the more easily accessible areas where the younger snakes are hanging out. That photo of the largest specimen appeared to be in a more inaccessible area, and by the short story, was not a guided tour.

I would also be interested in any other photos anyone comes across of E. beniensis, especially photographs of larger specimens. Although they occur within a relatively restricted range, they do not appear to be a rare snake within that range.
Thanks,

Kelly

[ Reply To This Message ] [ Subscribe to this Thread ] [ Hide Replies ]