Discovery of new 7 meter, 250kg anaconda made by team with Dutch presenter Freek Vonk

Dutch biologist and presenter Freek Vonk helped discover a new anaconda species. A group of international biologists and scientists found the animal in the north of the Amazon region. It looks very much like the other anaconda, but its DNA is different, Vonk reported on Instagram.

Until now, only one species of anaconda was known to occur throughout the Amazon region. The newly discovered species is found only in northern South America, including Venezuela, Suriname, and Guyana. “We have given the new species the Latin name Eunectes akayima, the ‘northern green anaconda.’ The word ‘akayima’ comes from several indigenous languages of northern South America and means ‘great snake.’” Vonk said.

The scientists took 78 samples from wild snakes and dead specimens and compared that DNA with anaconda DNA from databases in nine countries, including that of Naturalis in Leiden. They found that the northern green anaconda and the green anaconda’s DNA differ by 5.5 percent. By comparison, humans' and chimpanzees’ DNA differ by about 2 percent.

Like the original anaconda, this species is green or brown and often has dark spots all over the body. The snake can grow to about seven meters and weigh over 250 kilograms. The animal is also “extremely strong,” Vonk said.

Vonk called the discovery of the northern green anaconda a “highlight” of his scientific career. “Also, because this snake occurs in the Amazon, a place that feels like home to me.” But that also gives him mixed feelings, he added. “Because no matter how exciting the discovery of this snake is, the Amazon region is under severe pressure from climate change and the continued deforestation of primary rain forest.”

“Over a fifth of the rainforest has already disappeared, which is over 30 times the area of the Netherlands,” Vonk said. “The survival of these iconic giant snakes is inextricably linked to protecting their natural habitat.”

A total of 15 researchers contributed to the research paper about the discovery, which was published on Friday in the peer-reviewed journal Diversity. Jesús Rivas, from the New Mexico Highlands University, was the lead author. Vonk was the only researcher based in the Netherlands. The presenter is a professor at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and is a researcher tied to the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden.