Anaconda means elephant killer. An anaconda cannot really kill an elephant. However, it is the heaviest snake in the world. It can weigh hundreds of pounds.

This boa is too heavy to move fast. It has to wait for food to come to it. At night it lurks in a tree or in the water. The anaconda waits for an animal to come close to the water to get a drink. Then the snake bites the animal with its sharp teeth. It quickly wraps itself around its prey and squeezes. The animal cannot breathe, so it dies. Sometimes it drowns. The anaconda swallows its prey whole. It can take weeks to digest a big meal.

The anaconda male fights to win a mate. Many males will coil around one female. They wrestle. After two to four weeks, one male mates. The female gives birth to 20 to 40 live babies about six months later.

The anaconda does not often attack humans. People are still afraid. They kill the snake when they can. People cut down the forests where this snake lives to make farms. People also kill the snake for its skin. The anaconda can still be found in tropical South America.