STAR PHOENIX (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) 20 December 06 Swiss zoo swamped by 40 baby anacondas
Geneva (AFP): Swiss zoologists have more than a few hungry mouths to feed this Christmas after a female giant anaconda gave birth to 40 babies, a tropical gardens institution said on Tuesday.
The snakes were born on Dec. 2 at the Papiliorama tropical gardens in the small town of Kerzers in western Switzerland.
Their mother had given birth to another 40 babies just two years previously, the institution said in a statement.
The mother weighs 176 pounds and is more than six metres long, while the new arrivals are already 70 centimetres long and "a lot sturdier than the previous ones," Papiliorama said.
Anaconda births are rare in Europe.
The snake is not classed as an endangered species in its natural habitat of South America, but it is still regularly killed out of fear, superstition and the desire for trophies, the institute said.