Titanoboa

Graphical reconstruction of Titanoboa.

• Colombia

Titanoboa is the name of an extinct genus of boas ( Boidae ) from the Paleocene of South America. The only genus of the associated type is the type species T. cerrejonensis. It is the longest known snake in the Earth's history.

Description

Titanoboa was scientifically described in 2009 on the basis of a series of vertebrae from the Cerrejon coal mine ( Cerrejon Formation) in Departamento de La Guajira in northeastern Colombia. The find consisted of a nearly complete vertebrae and a total of 184 additional vertebrae and rib bones from a total of 28 individuals. It is the largest known snake vertebrae of all known fossil and extant species. On the basis of this discovery, a total length of about 13 meters and a weight of 1135 kg was assumed for the type. This Titanoboa is the largest known snake.

In the life Titanoboa probably resembled the living today in South America anaconda ( Eunectes murinus ).

Titanoboa as climate indicators

The poikilothermic or cold-blooded animals, which include snakes, is a direct relationship between the maximum body size and temperature of the environment. Large species require particularly high ambient temperatures in order to have a metabolic rate for a corresponding growth. Based on the estimated body length of 13 meters with an average annual temperature of 30 to 35 ° C is assumed for the habitat of the snake. Thus, the snake an indicator of significantly higher temperatures of the Neotropical region is as previously thought.

Etymology

The genus name is derived from the Titans, divine giants of Greek mythology, and " Boa " as the type genus of the Boinae. The species name is derived from the Cerrejon mine as locality, so the name means " Giant Boa of Cerrejón ".