A Gigantic Snake Prowled India's Jungles 47 Million Years Ago
A new analysis of fossilized vertebrae discovered in western India has revealed the existence of a giant snake species that may have measured some 11 to 15 meters (36.1 to 49.2 feet) in length when fully grown.
The researchers behind the work, from the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, acknowledge some uncertainty in their estimations, but they suggest the newly identified reptile they've named Vasuki indicus may have equaled the size of the largest snake in history, the Titanoboa, which died out some 58 million years ago.
Compared with snake species still slithering around today, V. indicus is way ahead. As far as verified measurements go, the longest living snake right now measures a paltry 7.67 meters.
Recovered from a fossil bed in the Naredi formation in the western Indian state of Gujarat, the remains would have been deposited in what was once a brackish lake or lagoon early in the Eocene, more than 40 million years ago.
Besides its astonishing length, the ancient snake can tell us more about the evolution of similar giant serpents. By assessing the size, shape and characteristics of the fossils, and comparing them to known species, the researchers have placed this snake in the now-extinct Madtsoiidae family.
