HOW BIG IS BIG? Facts from the World's Largest Reptile Zoo about Giant Reptiles and Snakes. — PART 2
As I mentioned in the first part of this post last week, our reward sign exists mostly to make a point that most reptile zoos fail to mention: not how big reptiles really get, but how big they really don't get.
But the Internet Never Lies!
In spite of regularly appearing stories on the Internet, there is no such thing as a 10-foot rattlesnake or a python or anaconda that was captured and found to genuinely be 40, 50, or 60feet long or any other giant reptiles that were found in some remote part of the world—let alone the suburbs or a reptile zoo. I cannot begin to tell you how many people have guaranteed us their grandpa, or uncle, or father saw, held, or killed a 9- or 10- or 11-foot rattler. Yet, no one—not even other reptile zoos—has ever been able to verify this or bring us an actual rattlesnake that's even 8 feet long. And, as we have thoroughly discussed in past blog posts, those many photos purporting giant reptiles, snakes and crocodilians on the internet are faked, often using forced perspective, or just outright lies. You can read two of my past posts on this subject here and here.
The African Connection That Never Panned Out
Some time ago I got a call from a man who said he was originally from South Dakota but now worked in the oil industry in Africa. He said he knew where 40-foot African Rock pythons were to be found. Apparently they were common in this one isolated remote area and he knew locals who would take him to capture them. Of course, he wanted to know if we would pay double the reward for a pair and also how to ship the giant reptiles to us. I told him without hesitation we would pay the reward for both a male and female pair of 40-foot pythons and even offered suggestions for shipping the giant reptiles to us. (I'm pretty free with our money when I know we won't be spending it!) The maximum size for an African Rock Python, by the way, is about 20 feet. And guess what? Yeah, we never heard from him again.
The verified record for the world's longest snake, the Reticulated Python from Asia, is 33 feet. And, although records for Anacondas are confusing, they probably don't get over 20 to 25 feet. However, a big anaconda can weigh up to a massive 300 pounds! No crocodile species alive today—in the wild, or in a reptile zoo—can reach a fabled 30 or more feet.
Reticulated Python
Green AnacondaManiac, Cassius, and Lolong
The biggest crocodile species on earth is the Saltwater Crocodile of Australia and Southeast Asia. The absolute maximum length for a Saltwater crocodile, according to our friend George Craig at Marineland Melanesia on Green Island in Australia, is probably 22 or 23 feet. George has spent his life working with crocs - he knows his stuff. Our own giant Saltwater Crocodile, Maniac, is 15 feet 7 inches long so he has some growing to do.
Cassius the Crocodile, Green Island, AustraliaThe largest crocodile ever confirmed was Lolong in the Philippines and he measured 20 feet 3inches. He was in captivity at reptile zoo in the Philippines for only a short time and unfortunately died in 2013. George Craig once again has the confirmed largest crocodile in captivity, Cassius, and he would easily measure 18 feet in length if he were not missing the tip of his tail and bit of his snout from his days chasing boats with outboard motors. Check out George's Facebook page for some really cool stuff!
South Dakota Giants
The records for giant reptiles in South Dakota are a bit less exciting:
- The Prairie Rattlesnake, the only rattler found within about 400 miles of Reptile Gardens, has a record length of 71 ½ inches (a whole two feet and one-half inch short of that $25,000 reward). Honestly, in South Dakota a really big rattlesnake would be 4 feet long.
Prairie Rattlesnake photographed in the Badlands
- If you captured one of our often seen Plains Garter snakes that straightened out to a whole 43 ½ inches, you'd have a world record.
Plains Garter Snake
- The red-bellied snake is rarely seen but common around here and would be a record setting giant at a mere 16 ¼ inches.
Red-Bellied Snake
Next time you visit the Reptile Gardens, have a look at our reward sign on the upper level of the Sky Dome. Nearby you'll find the words: "How Big is Big" and underneath are lines painted to show the record lengths for giant reptiles, there's a line for a python and a line for an 8-foot rattlesnake. I know, I know, that rattlesnake you saw in the Badlands last summer just had to be bigger than that line we have painted on the wall! All I can say is: bring him in and we will give you $25,000.
