Zoo buddy: Anacondas!

MONROE, La. (KNOE) - Meet Gamora! She’s a new green anaconda at the Louisiana Purchase Gardens and Zoo in Monroe. She’s about two years old right now and about 3 - 4 feet long.

“Anacondas typically get to be about 30 feet long and they typically can weigh up to about 550 pounds total. So they’re the largest snake in the world in the world,” says zookeeper Garrett Cole. “And something that’s kind of cool about them is anacondas actually give live birth. Most snakes lay eggs, but anacondas just like all boas actually give live birth, and they can lay up to 20 to 40 eggs in a single clutch or litter since it’s live birth.”

During their gestation period of about seven months, Cole says anacondas won’t eat.

He says they can get to be up to 12 inches long in diameter.

Because they can get so big, it’s hard to traverse the tree canopy so Cole says you can find these guys most of the time in the water.

At Gamora’s current size, Cole says she’ll eat fish, small rodents, lizards, and smaller things like that. But as she grows, Cole says her prey will too. He says it is not uncommon for an anaconda to eat jaguars, small cattle, deer, or alligators. They are non-venomous, so he says they’ll kill prey by constriction.

“These guys are found in the northern parts of South America. The Amazon River Basin is probably the most common place to find these guys,” explains Cole.

Gamora is in the reptile building, but during the construction of the new Louisiana Purchase Exhibit, the building will be closed. Zookeepers will be bringing some of the snakes, spiders, and other animals out for the public to see during this time. If you have a birthday party, you can request to see certain animals.

Boo at the Zoo is coming up on Saturday, October 28th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The zoo is open every day of the week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the splash pad is only open on weekends now. For the first year, the boat ride is going to remain open during the winter months.