According to " National Geographic " report, the largest Burmese python on record has appeared in Florida, USA. It may become the new "snake king".
This Burmese python is 5.48 meters long and weighs 97.5 kilograms (nearly 200 kilograms). At that time, three strong men were sweating profusely carrying it.
Some people believe that Burmese pythons are native to Asia and that the Burmese pythons in the United States cannot be counted.
After netizens learned about the size of the giant python, they felt that this "snake king" was too mini.
So why did the Burmese python go to Florida and grow so big? Is the Burmese python that escaped to the United States considered the "king of snakes"?
Do the rumored giant snakes such as the Panshan Python and the Qinling Serpent exist?
Today we will talk about these issues.
How did you find such a big snake?
There is a large swampland in Florida that is a paradise for pythons. It is inaccessible and it is difficult to find snakes hidden in them. This time, the capture of the "snake king" relied on technological means.
Researchers installed a GPS on a male Burmese python and followed it to find the nearly 200-pound female Burmese python.
Some people may ask, why install a locator on a snake? There are two main purposes:
(1) To do research
(2) To reduce their number
For example:
Scientists install GPS on migratory birds to understand their migration habits and flight parameters.
Based on this, humans know:
It turns out that there is a migratory bird in the world called Spot-tailed Godwit (chéng yù), which can fly continuously for 11 days and 12,000 kilometers without sleeping, eating, drinking, or stopping.
A few years ago, there was a documentary called "Judas' Collar" that was shortlisted for the Academy Award.
is about the camel, an invasive species in Australia, that was put on a collar with a positioning function by humans.
As long as these camels integrate into the new camel group, human helicopters and guns will appear and slaughter all the camels.
Using "collars", Australia once completed a plan to hunt 10,000 camels in 5 days.
According to the documentary, some collared camels seemed to understand that they would bring bad luck.
In the end, they chose to avoid the camels and wandered alone in the desert until they grew old.
Installed GPS on Burmese pythons, mainly because Burmese pythons are overpopulated in Florida, not only in large numbers, but also huge.
Why can the Burmese python that has traveled across the ocean grow so big?
Burmese pythons are native to Southeast Asia, and larger wild individuals live in tropical rainforests.
As a native species, the Burmese python in Asia has been in harmony with the local environment for millions of years. Unless there is a serious ecological imbalance, flooding will not occur.
For example:
Burmese pythons need to compete with competitors for food, such as reticulated python.
The number is controlled by natural enemies, such as wild cats, ferrets, crocodiles, raptors and so on.
In short, few of the 100 baby pythons in their place of origin can survive to adulthood, so the Burmese python is a first-level protected animal in my country.
The large-scale appearance of Burmese pythons in the United States began in the 1980s. At that time, there was a trend of snake breeding in the United States, and snakes from all over the world flocked to it.
According to records, from 2004 to 2010, Florida received 140,000 pythons from all over the world, with the majority of them being Burmese pythons. There are so many
s that it doesn’t take much thought to know that they cannot be controlled and will inevitably appear in the wild.
At that time, many people took away baby Burmese pythons from pet stores, but they had no idea what a 3-5 meter long python was.
When the little snake wrapped around the hand grows into a 3-5 meter long snake, out of fear or too much food, the only choice is to release it!
In addition, Florida is often visited by hurricanes .
For example: Hurricane Andrew in 1992 destroyed a large number of houses here.
At that time, more than 80,000 people were homeless, and a large number of pythons escaped into the wild without supervision.
After the hurricane, some experts pointed out that Burmese pythons may overflow. The inference is based on the following:
(1) Climate: Florida is a foot of North America extending towards the equator. Some areas have a tropical climate, which is suitable for the growth of pythons. .
(2) Environment: Florida has large swamps and wetlands, which can provide buoyancy for large reptiles to resist their own gravity, thus reducing friction, which is more conducive for them to reproduce more and grow longer. big.
(3) Food: The animals in the swamp are relatively weak, and the Burmese python is like entering a "newbie village". When the Burmese python first arrived, the number of the swamp's overlord " alligator " continued to decline.
Even though experts had anticipated it and taken measures, the number of pythons in the wild in Florida still exceeded 30,000 in 2013.
In order to prevent the continued proliferation of pythons, the local government has racked its brains, and installing GPS is one of the methods.
Hunting Burmese Pythons
There is an ancient profession in the United States called "bounty hunter". Originally, bounties were offered to extremely evil people, but now some are being used against animals.
In the past 20 years, Florida has often held "bounty hunter" competitions, and snake catchers from all over the country will flock to each competition. However, facing the 30,000 giant snakes in the swamp, this is only a drop in the bucket.
Later, the power of science and technology intervened, so under the guidance of the "collared" Burmese python, humans found this nearly 200-pound female Burmese python.
After the researchers dissected the Burmese python, they found that there were 122 eggs in its belly.
If these eggs have been fertilized, it is possible to lay 122 eggs.
These eggs will produce a large number of Burmese pythons, and the descendants will be endless...
In the swamps, several Burmese pythons of about 5 meters can be caught in each competition. When the locals see these Big snakes have a headache.
You will understand if you talk about a set of data:
In the 2013 python hunting competition, there were 1,600 participants, 800 of whom were armed with live ammunition. The hunting requirement was "life or death, as long as they are caught". As a result, a total of 68 Burmese pythons were caught.
Judging from these results, one egg laid by this so-called "Snake King" is enough to hold two competitions, and this does not include the grandson and great-grandson of the "Snake King".
This is why the Burmese python is a first-level protected animal in our country, but it will be euthanized in the United States. Does
"Snake King" count?
The king of snakes cannot be judged by size alone. If only by size, this Burmese python cannot be the king of snakes.
Give two examples:
(1) "Medusa", the holder of the Guinness World Record for the longest reticulated python, is 7.67 meters long and about 317 pounds.
(2) "Fluffy" who once lived in Columbus Zoo in Ohio, USA, is also a reticulated python, 7.32 meters long and weighing 272 pounds.
7 meter reticulated python skeleton
In short, captive pythons can easily exceed wild Burmese pythons in length and weight.
However, no one has ever regarded "Medusa" as the king of snakes, because she stays in a constant temperature room every day and is fed good food and drink without any pressure to survive.
In other words: it is meaningless for captive-bred snakes not to participate in the competition for the king of snakes.
In addition to artificially raising , there is another situation that makes no sense.
When Asian goldfish run into the waters of North America, the situation shown above will appear.
The reason why Burmese pythons in Florida can surpass their origin is the same as goldfish.
In other words, it is equally meaningless for individuals of invasive species to participate in the competition of the snake king.
According to records on wiki, the largest Burmese python captured in the Southeast Asian rainforest was 5.74 meters and 72 kilograms.
The longest snake ever captured is the reticulated python, and the longest individual in the wild is 6.95 meters.
In the Amazon rainforest, the historical extreme measurement value of the anaconda is 114 kilograms and 6.05 meters in length.
The current snake king is an anaconda that has been accurately measured and verifiable, weighing 97 kilograms and 5.21 meters.
The Burmese python captured this time is indeed larger than this anaconda.
If this Burmese python were found in the wild environment of Southeast Asia, it would undoubtedly be the new king of snakes, but as an invasive species it is a different matter.
Does the rumored python exist?
html In the early 119th century, it was popular among Western nobles to keep exotic animals in captivity. At that time, many animal dealers issued huge rewards, hoping that someone could catch a 10-meter-long snake.
The highest bounty, converted into today's RMB, was as high as tens of millions. As a result, the bounty kept rising, but the size requirements continued to decrease, and finally it was reduced to 8 meters and still no one cared.
From a scientific point of view, no one can receive such a bonus, because giant pythons measuring tens of meters or hundreds of meters do not exist.
(1) Not enough food
Being large means eating a lot.
html Titanoboa that lived 158 million years ago. The largest known individual was 15 meters long and weighed 1 ton.
Its menu includes a half-ton coal turtle and a giant crocodile, which is equivalent to two Siberian tigers .
1:1 Titanoboa
The African giant python (Gigantophis garstini), also known as the elephant-swallowing snake, lived 40 million years ago. The largest known individual is 12 meters long and weighs more than 600 kilograms. It feeds on ancestral elephants.
If the Panshan Python really existed, its food intake would be dozens or even hundreds of times higher than that of these two ancient pythons.
Then a mountain python will eat all the animals on the entire mountain in one meal.
From an energy perspective, there is no way any place on earth can sustain a population of pythons.
Some people may ask, can’t I just keep one? This involves another issue - continuation.
(2) The number is not enough
In biology, there is a concept called " minimum surviving population ", which refers to the minimum number of individuals for a population to continue healthily.
For example: if there is only one boy and one girl left, the second generation will involve inbreeding, and humans will not be able to continue healthily.
Biologists once calculated based on genetics and statistics and came up with a threshold of "50".
According to the concept of "minimum surviving population", if there are really huge pythons on the earth, then the number will be at least 50.
It is easy for humans to spot so many giant pythons running all over the mountain. However, no one has recorded such a phenomenon since ancient times.
(3) The place is wrong
Snakes are cold-blooded animals, and their body temperatures change with the environment.
A higher body temperature within a certain range means stronger growth and metabolism capabilities.
Going deeper, the speed of growth and metabolism depends on the catalyst - protein (enzyme) in the body.
The activity of protease is closely related to body temperature. Generally speaking, at 20-30 degrees, the enzyme catalytic efficiency is higher.
If the temperature is too low, the catalytic efficiency will be greatly reduced, and the efficiency of energy generation will only be enough to maintain the most basic life needs.
After the weather gets cold, animals have to find other ways to survive.
For example: migrating to places with high temperatures, or using hibernation to reduce activity and metabolism.
In short, in places with high temperatures all year round, cold-blooded animals grow faster and become larger.
This is the reason why from the ancient giant snakes Titan python and the elephant-swallowing giant snake to today's giant snakes anaconda, reticulated python, African rock python and Burmese python, they all appear near the equator.
Most of our country is in the temperate zone , which is not suitable for the growth of monstrous pythons, and cannot breed monstrous pythons.
(4) The "opening" method is wrong
According to rumors, most pythons come from deep mountains and old forests, such as the Qinling Serpent, the Changbai Mountain Serpent, etc.
In fact, no matter how good the place for these big snakes is, wild and captive individuals are not on the same level at all. "Medusa" and "Villi" are the best examples.
In short, no matter how good the mountains and old forests are, they are not as good as those raised by humans. Well, no matter how big the mountains and old forests are, they can't be as big as humans raising them.
But even so, humans cannot raise 8-meter pythons, so larger pythons cannot exist in the wild.
(5) The "belly" can't stand it.
The snake moves close to the ground and needs to rub against the ground. The larger the body, the greater the friction.
Grinding the belly to a bloody pulp is one thing, but the key is that the greater the friction, the slower the speed.
In order to solve this problem, the anaconda spends most of its time soaking in the Amazon river, so it is also called water anaconda or green water anaconda .
Burmese pythons in Florida rely on wetlands to enjoy "silky lubrication", so they can gain weight.
Titanoboa feeds on turtles and crocodiles, and the fossil excavation site is close to the estuary.
This shows that if a python is large enough, it needs to rely on the buoyancy of water to solve the problem of gravity (friction).
If the Panshan Python really exists, it should live in the sea, otherwise the "belly" cannot bear it at all and cannot move.
(6) Wrong timing
Titanoboa was short-lived because it encountered two outlets.
One is the mass extinction of the dinosaurs , a large number of ecological niches are vacant, and there is a blue ocean.
The other is that the temperature of the earth continued to rise during that period, and there was even a short-term surge, known in history as the "Paleocene and Eocene Extreme Thermal Event."
Within a certain range, high temperature is conducive to the development of cold-blooded animals. When the temperature drops back, Titanoboa will become extinct.
Today the earth is in the Quaternary Great Ice Age, the temperature is relatively low, and mammals dominate the world. In the Red Sea, the mountain python has no chance.
Therefore, it is impossible for the Panshan Python to appear in the age of mammals during the Quaternary Ice Age.
I saw the rumored giant python with my own eyes, maybe because I have bad eyesight.
According to the "Yangcheng Evening News" report:
On November 25, 2020, a 4-meter-long and weighing over 100 meters appeared in Shentang Village, Guangning County, Zhaoqing City, Guangdong Province. The 3-pound Burmese python has a body thicker than a human thigh.
More than 50 kilograms of Burmese pythons were found in Shenzhen subway station
In recent years, the maximum number of Burmese pythons captured in our country is about 50-70 kilograms.
Therefore, many people at that time suspected that the 100-jin giant python in Shentang Village had escaped from the breeding farm.
Before the report of the 100-pound giant python, many related videos appeared on social media.
Netizens guessed from 6 meters to 30 meters. Some even said: "Visually it weighs 1 ton and cannot be stewed in ten pots."
It can be seen that different people, seeing the same snake, judge the length to be very different.
This is actually a very normal thing.
American naturalist and zoologist Alpheus Hyde Willary has entered the Amazon jungle many times for scientific investigations.
Once, Willy encountered the largest anaconda he had ever seen in his life.
The expedition team members were very excited at the time, but the sizes of the anacondas they shouted were inconsistent, ranging from 6 meters to 18 meters. The final measurement of
was only 5.9 meters.
Nowadays, scientists only use the length data of previous pythons as a reference.
Because the previous measurement methods were inaccurate, including a lot of scientific research data.
With the development of science, biologists have discovered based on genetics and statistics that the body length of snakes has certain rules.
Generally, the maximum length is 2.5 times the minimum length. According to this rule, the maximum length of anaconda is calculated to be about 6 meters.
However, there are many anaconda data of more than 7 meters in the previous scientific research data.
Comparison of the vertebrae of reticulated pythons and titanoboa
Herpetologists believe that snakes are sinuous, twisting back and forth when measured, and that they have no sternum and that their ribs can expand and contract back and forth.
Especially when meeting people, snakes are highly nervous, their bodies twist and expand more violently, and the measurement error with a tape measure is large.
In modern scientific research, some scientific and technological means are used to measure snakes.
Sometimes, in order to obtain accurate data on large pythons, they are even given anesthesia.
Ordinary people are no more likely to misestimate the size of snakes than members of the expedition team, and this has a lot to do with photography.
When shooting, some photographers will use special lenses to reflect the length of the snake, and then find a tricky angle, so that the snake will appear much longer than it actually is.
Such techniques can not only make the snake longer, but also make the legs longer, make the body appear taller, and make the room appear larger. Everyone should be aware of this.
It is not easy for ordinary people to see snakes. If you occasionally see a big python, your brain may be short-circuited in an instant, and it is easy to make misjudgments.
The person who encountered the snake exaggerated the story of encountering the snake, and then passed it on from ten to ten, and then passed it on to hundreds of people. The more it spread, the more it became bigger and more mythical.
As a result, there have been many rumors that "someone saw the giant snake in the mountain with his own eyes."
Rumors like this mostly appeared in the last century. Now that information is so developed, it is impossible to hide a snake that big.
