In December 2003, in a little village on the Indonesian island of Java, villagers reported the finding of a Reticulated Python that measured 14.85 meters, weighed 447 kilos and had a girth of 85 centimetres! Catching the giant was no mean feet in itself. It took 65 grown men and the blessing of a local tribal medicine man (pythons are regarded as deities by the local tribes) to subdue the huge snake.
According to the Guinness book of records, the longest snake captured so far was "merely" 9.75 meters (this poor creature was shot in 1912 on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, and was almost surely also a Reticulated Python). The heaviest snake known was a Burmese python (Python molurus bivittatus), weighing 182 kilos and living in a terrarium in the American city of Gurnee. Since this animal would be one and a half times the length and more than two times the weight, it was quite a shocking discovery!
The brute eats about 3 to 4 fierce brown dogs a month (see exothermic). It's very picky about its food, and will for instance not eat dogs of any other colour. A spokesman for the zoo declared that when dealing with such a unique animal they didnt mind its peculiar dietary habits.
Hundreds of Indonesians had gone to visit their (by now famous) reptilian giant each day, when a photographer who works for Reuters came by. After taking a few photos he measured the huge animal, but unfortunately didn’t get any further than 6.5 meters. When questioned, the zookeeper stated he didn't understand how the animal had shrunk...