LARGEST EVER SNAKE FOSSIL FOUND IN WEST INDIA
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IN A groundbreaking discovery that redefines our understanding of prehistoric wildlife, scientists have unearthed evidence of what could be the largest snake to ever slither across the Earth.
Named Vasuki indicus, this colossal reptile once roamed the western Indian state of Gujarat, according to a recent study published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.
The fossilised remains, found in a mine, suggest Vasuki indicus weighed over a ton and stretched an astonishing 15 metres in length – that’s longer than the iconic Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The Vasuki indicus belonged to the Madtsoiidae family, a dominant group of snakes that thrived approxiamtely 90 million years ago until their extinction around 12 000 years ago. They spread from India through southern Eurasia and into north Africa after the Indian subcontinent collided with Eurasia about 50 million years ago.
Scientists recovered 27 vertebrae from the snake, including a few still in the same position as they would have been when the reptile was alive. They say it would have looked like a large python and would not have been venomous.
“Judging by its size, Vasuki was a slow-moving predator that would ambush and then constrict its prey to death, as anacondas and pythons do,” said palaeontologist Debajit Datta, one of the study’s authors.
Researchers believe given the snake’s impressive size its prey could have included large prehistoric crocodilian animals, turtles, fish and early ancestors of whales.
As scientists continue to unravel the mysteries of the past, discoveries such as Vasuki indicus remind us of the ever-changing story of life on Earth.
Prehistoric snakes like Vasuki weren't poisonous, were fairly slow and tended to ambush prey.