This Giant Anaconda Is So Big It Stops Traffic and Attacks A Car

Written by Katie Melynn
Updated: March 9, 2023
Β© Mark_Kostich/Shutterstock.com
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Key Points

  • While anacondas are native to Brazil, you wouldn’t expect to find one on the side of the road but rather in a lush, tropical habitat.
  • Massive anacondas, usually 15 feet in length, are nonvenomous snakes. They use their bodies to coil around their prey, squeezing them to death.
  • In the video, drivers pass by the perturbed snake. It even lunges toward its largest threat, a truck.

You may be on the lookout for snakes when you are on a hike or in the tall grass, but you probably never expected to come across an aggressive Anaconda while driving. These drivers saw the massive snake on the side of a rural road in Brazil and managed to get some amazing footage of it taking on the big trucks.

One truck goes ahead, pausing by the snake to make sure that it is clear. The second vehicle films the entire thing as the snake lunges toward the large truck. It continues on and the snake coils back on the ground. The second vehicle now has to pass by. Lucky for us, they keep the camera going as they get closer.

Anacondas are large and formidable, often over 15 feet long. This snake is absolutely massive and you can see the power in its body. Anacondas don’t have venom and use their bodies to wrap around and suffocate their prey.

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Green anaconda
Anacondas are large, often over 15 feet long, and while they don’t have venom, they use their bodies to wrap around and suffocate their prey.

Β©Patrick K. Campbell/Shutterstock.com

The snake is half on the road, making it difficult for the vehicles to pass by safely. Tall grass lines the road. It’s likely that the snake was in the brush and came out when it felt threatened or just wanted to see if the noise nearby meant a tasty meal. Anacondas are large but even they can’t take on two trucks. This snake clearly didn’t get the message, though, and tries to hold his own.

The second vehicle approaches and the snake watches warily. It uses it powerful muscles to lunge at the truck, mouth open. The driver yells, even though he is protected by the door. We can’t blame him! We can only imagine how tense things must have been as he tried to stay clear of the giant snake. The video ends before we see where the snake ended up. You can see other cars on the road also waiting for the snake to decide what he wants to do. We can only hope that the snake crossed the road and left the shaken drivers to continue their day.

Is This Normal Behavior?

Why did the snake cross the road? To get to the other side? Just like the chicken, we will never truly know the answer to this question. It is normal behavior for an anaconda to be on the road, taking up arms against a stream of humans in vehicles. Anacondas are not social; they prefer to avoid humankind as much as possible. They do not attack humans unless they feel threatened. Most likely, this snake was going about its business in the tall grasses beside the road and accidentally met with the road of cars itself. Then, not knowing what to think of such cumbersome, metal predators, went into defensive mode.

Anaconda Face
Anacondas usually avoid humans.

Β©iStock.com/4uves

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Anaconda Face - Anaconda
Β© Mark_Kostich/Shutterstock.com

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About the Author

Katie is a freelance writer and teaching artist specializing in home, lifestyle, and family topics. Her work has appeared in At Ease Magazine, PEOPLE, and The Spruce, among others. When she is not writing, Katie is a Teaching Artist with The APEX Arts Magnet Program in Anne Arundel County, Maryland and was awarded an Author Fellowship to Martha's Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing. She also enjoys spending time with her three kids and cat.

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