Anaconda Teeth: Ultimate Facts You Didn't Know Before

Anacondas are a type of semi-aquatic snake which can be found in South America, belonging to the Boa family.

These reptiles are among the largest snakes in the world, with the Green Anaconda (Eunectes murinus) holding the record for the longest snake ever at 20 ft (6 m) long.

Four species of anaconda are known to us - the yellow anaconda, green anaconda, dark-spotted anaconda, and the Bolivian anaconda. As anacondas are semi-aquatic in nature, they can usually be found living in or around slow-moving streams and rivers.

They are great swimmers, which has earned them the name 'water boas.' To learn more about these spectacular snakes and how they hunt their prey, read on!

Do anacondas have teeth?

Though the anacondas of South America do have teeth, unlike other snakes, they do not use them to bite their prey. They have four parallel rows of straight, sharp teeth located on their upper jaws. These teeth point backward into the mouth. They also have two rows of teeth on the bottom.

Anacondas, like all other boas, are non-venomous, so they can't subdue their prey by injecting venom into them.

Instead, they use their long, muscular bodies to wrap themselves around their prey tightly and slowly suffocate them to death. Then, opening their jaws wide, they swallow the prey whole, which they slowly digest inside their bodies.

Until the prey is fully digested, they can most likely be found in the same spot, as they do not need to hunt for other food during this period. Once anacondas feed, they can go without eating for weeks - even months at a time, depending on the size of their prey!

What is the function of their teeth?

So, if anacondas do not use their teeth to bite or chew their prey, what exactly do they use them for?

These snakes have six rows of teeth in total - four on the upper jaw and two below.

The teeth are quite sharp and face backward, which helps them to maintain a strong grip on their prey and drag it into their mouth slowly. As they do not have any limbs, this is the best way for them to ensure that they drag their entire prey into their mouths for digestion.

The teeth are also quite strong and help hold the struggling animal in place while the anaconda slowly wraps itself around it to suffocate it.

So, their teeth do not serve the purpose of tearing off flesh like for other carnivores, but rather as a gripping mechanism for them to swallow their prey whole.

Smaller anacondas eat smaller prey like birds, eggs, fish frogs, lizards, and rodents. On the other hand, larger anacondas can eat prey as large as wild pigs, deer, sheep, tapirs, and capybara! The males are usually larger than the female snakes, so on average, they consume larger animals.

How many teeth do anacondas have?

Anacondas have a total of four rows of teeth on their upper jaw and two teeth on the lower one - which amount to a total of between 90-100 teeth. The number of teeth may vary from species to species, though it is usually in this amount.

Anacondas have such a large amount of teeth as it assists them to clamp onto their prey and keep it in place, as well as helps to slowly push it into their bodies through their mouths. They have sharp, needle-like teeth, unlike those of other animals.

How long are anaconda teeth?

Anacondas are hands down the largest snakes in the world, which would mean that they have the largest teeth among all snakes, too, right? However, the largest teeth among snakes belong to the African Gaboon viper, measuring around 2 in (5 cm) long!

As we do not know about the exact length of an anacondas teeth, we can assume that they measure between 0.5-1 in (1.2-2.5 cm) in length, as they are quite long and needle-like.

Anacondas do not need long fangs, as they do not use them to inject venom into their prey; rather, they just use them to grip the animal in place.

The size and number of their teeth are similar to that of boas.

Did You Know...

Due to their semi-aquatic nature, anacondas have adapted well to living in the water. Their skin has evolved to become soft and supple, and it can withstand a good amount of water absorption.

There are four known tropical anaconda species - dark-spotted anaconda, yellow anaconda, green anaconda, and the Bolivian anaconda. The largest of these are green anacondas. All of these species of anacondas belong to the genus Eunectes and the boa family, which is Boidae, which also includes Boa constrictors.

Anacondas have their eyes at the top of their heads so that they can peek out of the water surface while keeping the rest of their bodies submerged.

In fact, anacondas can remain completely underwater for up to 10 minutes!

Green anacondas can move with a speed of 5 mph (8 km/hr) on land, and they can swim as fast as 10 mph (16 km\hr)!

These anacondas are usually found in their natural habitat of rivers and streams - which are active throughout the year. They're most commonly found in the rainforests of the Amazon basin in South America.

However, a few anacondas can be found living in grasslands and savannahs, which only flood during part of the year - the snakes living in this type of habitat bury themselves in wet mud for the dry season and lie dormant until it floods again. Once the rainy season starts, they dig themselves out.

Males have a much bigger body than females, with the average weight range being between 66-154 lb (30-70 kg).

Anacondas are among few of the wild snake species which give birth to live young! Females can give birth to around 24-35 live young at a time, though even 80 - at a time has been observed!

They have quite a unique way of breeding, with many males attempting to mate with a single female. Once they find a female, the males will wrap themselves around her body, forming a 'breeding ball.' The breeding process can take up to four weeks in this manner.

Once the females are pregnant, they develop eggs, which hatch inside their bodies themselves. Once the fertilization period of 8-12 weeks is over, the females give birth to the young.

Anaconda teeth vs. python teeth - Wild pythons have sharp, deadly teeth that can cause extremely painful bites. They have 150 teeth, all of which are around 0.3 in (0.7 cm) or longer in length, which they use to grip onto their prey hard.

The teeth are razor sharp and curve back into the mouth, similar to those of anacondas. They then wrap around their prey and squeeze it to death, then eat it whole - very similar to anacondas!

If you want to visit these animals, you can visit any zoo or aquarium. It is estimated that anacondas in the zoo feed only once a month.