Will Smith's documentary crew discover 'world's largest snake'
A mind-blowing discovery during filming with Will Smith...
In the depths of the Amazon rainforest lies some of the world's deadliest creatures. Will Smith is on a mission to journey across the Earth, discovering and educating us on biomes, communities, and landscapes.
His mission during the National Geographic series, 'Pole to Pole', led to an unimaginable discovery.
KZN: Discover ancient animals at the North Coast’s Crocodile Creek
In the South American rainforest, an iconic green anaconda found to be consisting of two species was uncovered by an unlikely collaboration between researchers and renowned actor, Will Smith.
According to IFL Science, Professor Bryan Fry from the University of Queensland was leading a study on the effects of oil drilling in the Amazon and stumbled upon the groundbreaking discovery during a documentary expedition.
Here is the moment the discovery occurred:
As captured in the video above, "The size of these magnificent creatures was incredible – one female anaconda we encountered measured an astounding 6.3 meters [20.6 feet] long," he added, noting that Waorani people have previously spotted even larger snakes "measuring more than 7.5 meters [24.6 feet] long and weighing around 500 kilograms [1102.3 pounds]."
According to National Geographic, green anacondas are non-venomous, constricting snakes native to South America and are members of the boa family. The reptiles are considered the heaviest snakes in the world. On average, they live up to 10 years in the wild.
Read More: Darren Maule's harrowing encounter with a Durban snake
While many Durbanites are glad to hear this particular snake is far away, snake season is in full swing in the 031.
KZN is home to many snake species, so there are many stories to tell. We reached out to residents on some of their snake encounters.
KZN residents have taken to East Coast Breakfast's Facebook page to share some stories. See below:
I've been bitten twice actually but the one that was scary was the mamba hitting the beak of my Cap in St Lucia ...as I turned I realised it was aiming for my face. The second time it was boa "feeding times."
Yes!!! My encounter was not serious but hilariously funny. Whilst cleaning the garden I felt something on my big toe that felt like an ant bite. Without looking I just slapped it off my toe and realised it was biggen than an ant. When I looked down I notice the brown house snake twisting around at my feet. We still laugh about it to this day.
I climbed a tree to pick macadamia nuts. Shook a branch and jumped off of the tree as I landed a snake bit me. It was an Adder. Felt like a million bee stings. I was rushed to hospital where they gave me the anti venom.
Yes…her name was Palesa. I don’t wanna talk about it.
I was bitten by a puff adder in 2019. I was walking up my driveway and it bit me. We presume it had been disturbed by fence making activities and was angry. I didn't even see it! I didn't stand on it, it must have just had enough and tagged me on my ankle. I was wearing slops. At first I thought I had been stung by a bee. When I didn't see the bee on my ankle, I stepped back to find my next suspect, wasp, and saw Ms Puffy coiled and ready to strike again! I took photos of the snake , mostly because I knew everyone would argue with my identification , and then off we went to St Augustine's. We called a friend and he told me to move my foot and elevate it as much as possible to spread the venom, as it's a cytotoxic venom and this is not advised with other snake bites. So we drove with my foot on the dash and dancing steps in the air! No medical aid, but they treated me immediately. I had 4 or 5 vials of anti venom. There was not much pain at all. It swelled up very fast though. I was hectic allergic to the anti venom and needed a lot of adrenaline to counteract it. I instantly had hives from the anti venom, all over my body, except for my leg where the snake bit me, as the anti venom went to work! I had to stay in hospital from the anaphylactic shock , and then ended up getting swine flu and almost dying. The bite itself wasn't such an issue. Was swollen and sore for several days. But the 'swine flu' (was it actually early COVID?) Almost killed me. It took me months to recover fully after it all. And no, I didn't kill the snake either! It was just being a snake and I was just unlucky. I still wear slops too. I'm just a lot more wary of snakes now, especially puff adders. I took it all as quite a spiritual journey. Had a very deep spiritual experience in hospital and it accelerated my spiritual path.
Darren Maule shared his own harrowing story about an encounter with a Durban snake.
Check out this heart-pounding experience shared by our East Coast Breakfast team member:
*Language warning
@darrenmaule Please keep an eye out for this guy… #SAMA28 #tiktoksa #fyp #HereWithYou #EastCoastBreakfast ♬ original sound - Boomer Maule
Stay tuned for an update on the snake babies who have captivated KZN's attention.
We will bring you the latest at East Coast Radio.
HOW TO LISTEN TO EAST COAST RADIO
- Listen to East Coast Radio on the FM (frequency modulation) spectrum between 94 and 95 FM on your radio.
- Listen live to ECR by clicking here or download the ECR App (iOS/Android).
- Listen to East Coast Radio on the DStv audio bouquet, channel 836.
- Switch to the audio bouquet on your Openview decoder and browse to channel 606
- Listen to us on Amazon Alexa.
More on East Coast Radio:
Image courtesy of canva