ISLAMABAD: Scientists in the Amazon rainforest have discovered an unknown species of green anaconda, which is thought to be the largest species of snake to have been discovered. The newly discovered reptile is called the northern green anaconda (Eunectes akiyama) and was discovered in Ecuador and has been genetically different to its closest relatives since almost 10 million years ago, even though they appear almost the same.
Video clips posted on the Internet display the immense size of the beast, with a 6.1-metre-long (20-foot), 200-kilogram (441-pound) specimen being swum with by Dutch biologist Freek Vonk, reports CNN.
Hitherto, it was believed that there is only one species of green anaconda in the wild, the Eunectes murinus. But a study published this month in the journal Diversity has confirmed that snakes in northern South America are a genetically different species.
According to Professor Bryan G. Fry of the University of Queensland, who has almost 20 years of experience in researching anaconda species in South America, the discovery was incredible.
According to Fry, we were using the anacondas as an indicator species to determine the effects of extensive oil spills in the Yasuni region of Ecuador. The oil extraction in that area is totally unregulated and it is causing a lot of harm to the environment.
The study found that although the Eunectes akiyama and its southern counterpart split approximately 10 million years ago, they still cannot be visually differentiated. The interesting thing is that they are still so similar even though there is a 5.5 percent difference in their genes, which is incredible considering that humans are only 2 percent different genetic than chimpanzees, Fry said.
The findings are important to conservation and public health. Anacondas are also crucial indicators of ecological health and some of the snakes studied were contaminated with heavy metals of oil pollution. Fry observed that arapaima fish, which is another species that was affected by the spills, also accumulating petrochemical toxins.
This is a health hazard. When arapaima are accumulating these pollutants, pregnant women should not consume them, similarly to some fish such as salmon or tuna because of mercury, Fry warned.
The study shows that there is an urgent need to regulate oil activities in the Amazon not only to save its unique wildlife, but also to save the health of the local communities.
