Sunday, August 26, SPECIAL DAY!

  Ararauna, Brazil
Friday, August 31, 2007

Sunday, August 26
Áve Project
Cool, Overcast clouds in the morning.
Scattered clouds in the afternoon.
 
SPECIAL DAY!
 
Today, as we finished the morning bird census with Flavio, the posauda manager met us on our return to the compound. He said "be careful when you go in the lab. The boys caught a snake, and we put it in there."  We were thinking, "What's the big deal, we've caught a few snakes already. They are small, and fit into the terrarium in the lab without incident." Then the manager said the words we've all be hoping for. He smiled and with a deep voice, whispered "AN....A....CON...DA" !  Anaconda!!!!! Oh my gosh! The Pantanieros had cornered and caught a giant anaconda and it was waiting in the lab to be surveyed and added to our study!!! YEEEE--- HAAAAWWWWW. We ran to the lab to take a look. Oh WOW, what a huge snake it was! It looked to be two to three meters in length, and fifty centimeters in girth! Ellen and Mara, the herpetologists were still in the field with the Herp team, so we had to wait for their return. It was so thrilling. We went into the lab anyway, just to get a close up look.

Anaconda in the lab

The snake was coiled in the middle of the room.

There s/he is!

The huge snake's midsection was bulged with a recent meal, perhaps a small capybara. It was very nervous in captivity and had defecated on the floor. At least 50 milliliters of green and yellow snake-poop was smeared all over our lovely lab floor. The stench in the room was atrocious. Nevertheless we were compelled to go in and take a good, close look. We took some pictures with us sitting around the snake, and then waited patiently for the Herp team to come back in their truck.
 
Anacondas are land/water snakes that live comfortably in the Baía and surrounding areas. They have no predator, except for the Jacarei, and most Caiman will give them a wide birth. The anaconda is has no venom in its bite. It kills its prey by constriction. It squeezes them to death. It sneaks up silently on its prey. Then with amazing swiftness, it bites hard to hold the prey. Then it rapidly wraps its body around the prey, coiling it entirely. It then starts the unmerciful process of slowly squeezing its prey to death. The snake is incredibly strong, even strong enough to crush the life out of a full grown human. We keep our distance and are NEVER with the snake alone. If you were alone, and the snake got around you, you would be a "goner".
 
Ellen and Mara arrive soon with the Herp team, and join in the excitement. Mara has been working with snakes for years, and has never seen a wild anaconda up close. Our task now is to survey the snake, hopefully without upsetting it too much. If we upset the snake too much, it will regurgitate its meal, perhaps harming itself in the process.  Being concerned scientists, our goal is to treat the snake with calm respect. We will measure and photograph it, then return it to the wild. This is NOT an easy task. The snake is huge, and dangerous!
 
The safest and gentlest thing to do is simply to mob the snake and grab it. Craig has worked in animal habitats before, and has experience with large snakes.

Say hello

He's "the Man of the Hour" and takes initiative to grab the snake first...right behind its head.

3 meters, that's a lot of muscle

The snake jumps in alarm as we descend on it with all hands. Ellen and Mara direct us to uncoil the snake and under no circumstances allow it to coil up again. Especially, it is NOT to coil around one of US. We wrestle the snake outside and gently place it stretched out on the grass.

Check up

Ellen and Mara quickly use a tape measure to record its length.

Measuring

It measures an incredible 320 centimeters! That's three meters and 20 centimeters. That's HIGHER than the high diving board at the Olympic swimming pool!  (The three meter board)
Next we are to mark the snake by cutting an identifier notch into a specific scale on its belly.

Almost finsihed

This is done so that if we or any other researchers should catch this snake again, we will know it's the one we captured today. The scale to cut is in the caudal (tail) area, near the cloacae. (Anal opening) After we cut the notch, we notice that the snake has intestinal parasites. There are tiny worms emanating from its cloacae.  Ellen rushes back into the lab to get a specimen jar and some forceps. She collects some of the worms for later analysis. We are unable to weigh the snake because it is so big and we do not have a proper scale.  Regrettable, it is now time to release our precious visitor back into the wild. We have enjoyed our brief visit, but this is a huge wild snake. This snake needs to stay wild. It needs to enjoy a full and meaningful life in the Baía.

Another shot of the team with snake

So, now we gently lift the snake and carry it to the waters edge, just a few meters away. As we set it down, we expect it to make a speedy dash to the water. But it doesn't. It hesitates for awhile, perhaps to get its bearings. Or perhaps it has sensed that we mean it no harm, and will allow us time to take a few more pictures in an effort to say "thank you".  After a long ten seconds, it slides slowly back into the Baía. We watch slowly, in awe of the huge beast. A curious Jacarei paddles over to take a look at the commotion. When it sees the anaconda, it changes direction and leaves in a hurry.  Our group is silent as we walk back to the compound. Everyone is hushed with awe. We all agree that we have perhaps witnessed the apex of our trip.  What an incredible place this Brazilian Pantanal is!! How could it possibly get any better than this?
 
We shall see......