OPINION
In Australian author Greig Beck’s ripping Lost World Primordia series, a group of moderns are time-transported into the primeval South American jungle. They encounter all sorts of prehistoric beasties, all very much alive and hungry. But the ‘boss’ monster is a terrifying gigantic snake: the aptly named Titanoboa: 14m (45 ft) of fangs and fury.
They’re probably lucky, though, that they were in South America and not India.
Researchers examining fossilized vertebrae found in a western Indian mine in 2005 just determined that they once made up the spine of a massive prehistoric snake.
The creature, dubbed Vasuki indicus after a Hindu snake king, measured between 36 and 50 feet in length and weighed over a ton, making it one of the largest serpents to ever slither the Earth.
Named after the mythical snake Vasuki, who wraps around the neck of Shiva, this particular monster outsized Titanoboa by a good metre and weighed nearly a metric tonne.
Given the size of Vasuki, it’s unlikely that the snake was a very swift predator. Researchers believe that it preferred to spend its time on the ground rather than in water or in trees. It would have strangled its prey, similar to an anaconda, rather than strike.
“Considering its large size, Vasuki was a slow-moving ambush predator that would subdue its prey through constriction,” [Debajit Datta] told the Associated Press.
Researchers are not confident about the creature’s diet, but they did find catfish, turtles, crocodilians, and primitive whales within the same fossil layer that may have served as its food source.
All That’s Interesting
Vasuki lived in the Middle Eocene, some 45 million years ago, while Titanoboa lived somewhat earlier, in the Paleocene, some 60 million years ago. During both periods the Earth was much warmer than at present. Titanoboa also had the opportunity of a world recently vacated by the dinosaurs who had ruled for so long.
So it grew big. Very big.
“The snake’s body was so wide that if it were moving down the hall and decided to come into my office to eat me, it would literally have to squeeze through the door,” explained Jason Head, a paleontologist who studied Titanoboa.
Like Vasuki, the gigantic serpent is believed to have been an ambush-and-crush predator.
When its killer gaze latched onto five-foot giant turtles or 20-foot long crocodiles, the Titanoboa likely waited in shallow water for its prey to approach. Once the unfortunate animal got close enough, the snake would strike – and crush its meal to death.
If you’ve never heard of either of these monstrous snakes, it’s no wonder. Their discovery is extremely recent.
Though this ancient animal terrorized the world for millions of years, it took a long time for modern-day humans to realise that it had even existed.
In 2002, a fossilized leaf discovered in a Colombian coal mine convinced scientists that a rainforest had once flourished at the same site. Indeed, they soon found fossils of giant turtles and crocodiles, as well as early bananas, avocados, and bean plants.
But of all the finds, one stood out: a massive vertebra. Convinced that it had once belonged to a snake, possibly one caught in a muddy landslide, researchers scoured the ground for more bones.
In the end, they found the remains of not one but 28 enormous snakes. Thrillingly, they also found three snake skulls – which can be elusive. Snakes use the muscles in their mouths to kill, not their bones, and skulls often disintegrate over time.
All That’s Interesting