Feliz cumpleaños, 21 years for the Beni Anaconda, Eunectes beniensis (Dirksen, 2002) (Serpentes, Boidae): an update of voucher specimens, species’ distribution, and clarification of locality data of type specimens

Abstract

Little information for Eunectes beniensis (Dirksen, 2002) (Serpentes, Boidae) exists in the scientific literature and museum data. We review the natural history, diet, reproduction, distribution of this species and discuss its identifying characteristics. We present new records and discuss the species’ distribution in Bolivia. As reported in the previous literature, the geographic locality data of the holotype and paratypes are incorrect. We report corrected data for these specimens and update knowledge of the species’ distributional status and natural history by summarizing novel and existing data from the entirety of this species’ known range. We provide a distribution map based on vouchered museum specimens.

Keywords

• Amazon
• Bolivia
• Neotropics
• snake