1 of 4 2 of 4 3 of 4 4 of 4
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — The New England Aquarium gave physicals to four anacondas Wednesday morning. The four anacondas — Kathleen, Wilson, Marion, and Anna — are part of the aquarium’s Amazon exhibit.
According to the aquarium, anacondas are the largest snakes in the world.
One snake, Kathleen, is 14 feet long and weighs 80 pounds. Kathleen likes to stay hidden in the exhibit, according to New England Aquarium’s Tony LaCasse.
“So with the snake staying hidden a lot, that’s harder for our biologists to see. So, we will do exams on them anywhere from every 6-12 months,” LaCasse said. “Once they’re taken off exhibit, they’re sedated. And then they’re handled by, as you saw, it takes about six or seven staff to be able to move that animal.”
Anacondas receive similar tests in their exams that humans do, according to the aquarium. This includes being weighed and measured, blood draws, vital signs, stool samples, and sometimes an x-ray, ultrasound, or echocardiogram.
A healthy anaconda is expected to live a human’s lifespan.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Kendall Buhl (@KBuhlWBZ) reports