Is this a true story?

Someone mentioned this to me at work the other day. I decided to look it up on the internet.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/art...ake_story.html

Is this true or an urban myth?

Wow....grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrross! I hope its not real!

Not the first version I've seen of this story.

http://www.snopes.com/critters/snakes/measured.asp

I laugh everytime I read that one.

Now I know why my boa goes months without eating. jk (not really, he does eat once every month or two)

Seriously though...boa constrictors generally do not grow large enough to think of an average sized person as a meal. An anaconda or burmese python, perhaps a small person......

That said, although they wouldn't eat a person, they could constrict and kill you if they wrap around your throat or ribs.... they do have the force to crush you to death.

Thanks, I thought it was too weird to be true!

I laughed out loud at this part in Snopes!

To look at it another way, if pythons were in the habit of measuring before striking, they'd starve. Their prey wouldn't willingly wait for them to finish mimicking tape measures before consenting to be eaten; they would hop away to safety as soon as they noticed large snakes stretching out alongside them.

Click to expand...

And another way to think of it... it's a snake. I love reptiles, but there's just not really any ability for them to plan ahead. Fault of the reptile brain, so to speak.

It's also why sometimes snakes will try for too large of meals and end up getting more then they can handle.

Or why they don't know any better but to steal a chicken from a coop....unable to get back through the wire until the meal has been digested.

I love reptiles, but people tend to credit them with far more thought than they're capable of.

Well, I know less than nothing about reptiles, especially snakes, so I had to ask

^Surely you've had biology classes and heard the term "reptile brain" to describe the very primitive basic responses and behaviors in humans? Well, we evolved much more than that to our brains, obviously, but reptiles never really did. Of course some reptiles are a little better, turtles have really good memories for example, and larger lizards can learn and remember some things. But ultimately, reasoning just isn't there.

Originally Posted by Arlyn

Or why they don't know any better but to steal a chicken from a coop....unable to get back through the wire until the meal has been digested.

Click to expand...

I always feel sorry for them when they do something like that... but I have to laugh, too.

Originally Posted by Snake_Lady

I laugh everytime I read that one.

Now I know why my boa goes months without eating. jk (not really, he does eat once every month or two)

Seriously though...boa constrictors generally do not grow large enough to think of an average sized person as a meal. An anaconda or burmese python, perhaps a small person......

That said, although they wouldn't eat a person, they could constrict and kill you if they wrap around your throat or ribs.... they do have the force to crush you to death.

Click to expand...

Yeah... I never seen a domestic boa get big enough to eat a person. There have been some cases in Brazil of Anacondas... They do have the capability, and yes, they have eaten a few people. Calf and crocodiles are frequently found in their bellies.
Now, as Chris says, boas can give you a deadly hug - this they can certainly do...

Originally Posted by strange_wings

It's also why sometimes snakes will try for too large of meals and end up getting more then they can handle.

Click to expand...

Like this Burmese python and a 6 ft. alligator: Snake bursts after gobbling gator