When we talk about snakes, we get goosebumps picturising slithering snakes by our sides. Silently passing or being aggressive, snakes are always the best performers in sneakiness. Measuring the length of a snake is a task in itself. Well as they say go to great length, surely they were talking about measuring a snake’s length. The snake is actually a snake in the grass! while they go to measure it, because it cannot be trusted. Well, jokes apart, the first thing is it moves so much and so fast. Obviously, It is a snake and the snake Slithers! That’s why they have to sedate it like too high before they measure its length. Here in this article, we have provided you with the list of the top 10 largest snakes in the world.
| S.N. | Snake Name | Botanical Name | Weight | Length | Venomous/Non-venomous | Short Description |
| 1 | Green Anaconda | Eunectes murinus | ~80 kg | 9 meters | Non-venomous | Belongs to the semi-aquatic family of boa species. It is the longest and 3rd heaviest snake in the world. Kills prey by constriction. |
| 2 | Reticulated Python | Malayopython reticulatus | ~158 kg | 8 meters | Non-venomous | World’s longest snake in captivity. Found in southern and southeast Asia. The population decreased due to hunting for skin and sale as pets. Listed as least concern. |
| 3 | Amethystine Python | Morelia amethistina | ~20 kg | 5-8 meters | Non-venomous | Found in Indonesia, Australia, and Papua New Guinea. Good swimmer, preys on wallabies and small rodents. Third longest snake. |
| 4 | Burmese Python | Python bivittatus | ~98 kg | 5 meters | Non-venomous | Native to southeast Asia, vulnerable due to pet trade. Females are slightly longer and heavier. |
| 5 | African Rock Python | Python sebae | ~50 kg | 3-5 meters | Non-venomous | Among the largest snakes. Preys on antelope, sometimes crocodiles. Females protect nests and hatchlings. |
| 6 | King Cobra | Ophiophagus hannah | ~6-9 kg | 3-4 meters | Venomous | Longest venomous snake, not a true cobra. Categorized as vulnerable. Displays threat by spreading neck-flap, erecting fangs, and hissing. |
| 7 | Indian Python | Python molurus | ~50-90 kg | 3 meters | Non-venomous | Native to Southeast Asia and Indian Subcontinent. Portrayed as Kaa in The Jungle Book. Females can be up to 4.6 meters in length. |
| 8 | Black Mamba | Dendroaspis polylepis | ~1.6 kg | 2-3 meters | Venomous | Highly poisonous, second-longest venomous snake. Aggressive, fast, and attacks with razor-sharp fangs. |
| 9 | Boa Constrictor | Boa constrictor | ~10-15 kg | 2-3 meters | Non-venomous | Large, non-poisonous snake native to tropical South America. Popular as pet snakes. Sexual dimorphism with females being larger. |
| 10 | King Brown | Pseudechis australis | ~3-6 kg | 2-2.5 meters | Venomous | Highly venomous, native to Australia. The venom causes muscular damage and blood clots. Not as deadly as other Australian snakes but still dangerous. |
1. Green anaconda – Eunectes murinus
Length: 9 meters
Average weight: ~80 kg
The Green anaconda (Eunectes murinus) belongs to the semi-aquatic family of boa species. It is found mainly in South America and the Caribbean island of Trinidad. The Green Anaconda is also known as the emerald anaconda, common water boa, giant anaconda or southern green anaconda. It is the longest and heaviest snake in the world. It is a non-poisonous snake and kills its prey with a constriction which is why it is also called the boa-constrictor. Its average weight is around 80 kg and it can grow up to 9 meters long, however, some snakes of this species can reach up to 11m in length.
2. Reticulated python –Malayopython reticulatus
Length: 8 meters
Average weight: ~158 kg
The reticulated python’s botanical name is Malayopython reticulatus. It is the world’s longest snake ever in captivity. In the wild, it can grow up to 8m long. This python special belongs to southern and southeast Asia. It is the 3rd heaviest snake in the world. It is a non-poisonous constructor. It doesn’t kill or eat adult humans. Due to the hunting for skin and sale as pets, its population has significantly decreased. It is listed in the IUCN Red List under the least concern category.
3. Amethystine python – Morelia amethistina
Length: 5-8 meters
Average weight: ~20 kg
The amethystine python is primarily found in Indonesia, Australia and Papua New Guinea. It is also called the sanca permata or scrub python in Indonesia. It is 3rd among the longest snakes in the world. It is a non-venomous snake and it belongs to the family Pythonidae. It eats wallabies and small rodents. This snake is a very good swimmer. They can grow up to 5m long in the wild. However, they can be 8 m long.
4. Burmese python – Python bivittatus
Length: 5 meters
Average weight: ~98 kg
The Burmese python is native to Southeast Asia. In 2009 it was considered as a distinct species, different from Indian pythons. It is categorized as vulnerable on the Red List of IUCN. It is a non-poisonous snake. In the wild, it can grow up to 5 meters. However, a snake named ‘Baby’ was 5.74 meters long. They show sexual dimorphism. Females can be identified as a little longer and heavier than males. Their population has significantly dropped due to the pet trade.
5. African rock python – Python sebae
Length: 3-5 meters
Average weight: ~50 kg
The Central African rock python is a python species that is native to Sub-Saharan Africa. It is among the largest snakes in the world. It is a non-poisonous constrictor snake. It is considered a delicacy in Sub-Saharan Africa which can lead to a possibility of reducing the population rapidly. It prey on animals like antelope, and sometimes crocodiles. It is an oviparous animal. Female rock python protects the nest and hatchlings sometimes which is a unique quality among snake species.
6. King cobra – Ophiophagus hannah
Length: 3-4 meters
Average weight: ~6-9 kg
The King Cobra is a venomous snake and is also known as Ophiophagus hannah. It is the only member of the genus Ophiophagus. King Cobra is not a true Cobra however it is called King Cobra due to some resemblance. It can grow up to 3- 4 meters. It is the longest venomous snake in the world. To display threat it spreads its neck-flap, erects fangs, raises its head upright, makes eye contact and hisses. It is categorized as vulnerable in the Red List of IUCN.
7. Indian python – Python molurus
Length: 3 meters
Average weight: ~50-90 kg
The Indian Python is native to Southeast Asia and tropical and subtropical regions of the Indian Subcontinent. It is commonly known as the Indian rock python, black-tailed python or Asian rock python. It usually reaches 3m in length. It is a non-poisonous snake like other pythons. It was the species that was portrayed as Kaa in Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book and The Jungle Book movie by Disney. The longest specimen was found in Pakistan, of around 52 kgs of weight and 4.6 m in length.
8. Black mamba – Dendroaspis polylepis
Length: 2-3 meters
Average weight: ~1.6 kg
The Black Mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis) belongs to the family Elapidae. These are highly poisonous snakes. It is the second-longest poisonous snake after the king Cobra. It can grow up to 2-3 m in length. It can weigh around 1.6 kg. It is very aggressive. It can attack from a good distance with a speed of 16 km/h and bites its prey everywhere with its razor-sharp fangs.
9. Boa constrictor – Boa constrictor
Length: 2-3 meters
Average weight: ~10-15 kg
The Boa Constrictor is commonly known as Boa and belongs to the family Boidae. It is a large, high-weighted and non-poisonous snake. It is native to tropical South America. Many subspecies are known involving boa constrictor and imperator. Boa Imperators are one of the most popular pet snakes in the world. They can grow up to 3 meters in the wild. Sexual dimorphism is seen where females are generally larger than males.
10. King brown – Pseudechis australis
Length: 2-2.5 meters
Average weight: ~ 3-6 kg
King brown is commonly known as Mulga Snake. It is a highly venomous snake species. It is native to large parts of Australia. It can grow up to 3.3 meters in length. It is not as deadly as other Australian snakes but its venom in large quantities leads to muscular damage and blood clots and eventually death.
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