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Clear publicity stunt. Same history appeared a few days ago under a different issue. Taking in mind the position of the camera too close to the snake head, I w

Clear publicity stunt. Same history appeared a few days ago under a different issue. Taking in mind the position of the camera too close to the snake head, I wouldn't even discard that this hasn't been filmed on an aquarium. A truly wild snake never would allow to get too close without a response.

littlestymaar 3y ago
How do you know the position of the camera? It could be 2 meters away and zoomed in.
- pvaldes 3y ago
  I can't know. But In some part of the video you can spot the sake head making a strange movement, like bumping into some invisible obstacle or something. Zooming into a dirt river does not made the dirt between the target and the lens disappear magically I'm just discussing the title suggesting that this video shows the biggest anaconda measured. This is obviously publicity. I have seen much bigger animals on photos or records. Is a big discovery so, why the need to lie about that?. I don't have any problem with the claim that a new species of anaconda had been discovered. What I dislike, a lot, is the banalization of the Biology with media disrespecting the zoologists and forcing them to adopt a Tarzan persona, and became children entertainers begging for aaws and oows. Congratulations to the Dutch Irwin for appearing in the Rivas article among the other twenty researchers, but if his apport was the video swimming with the snake, it was totally unnecessary.
mcv 3y ago
The diver in that video is Freek Vonk, famous Dutch TV biologist (basically the Dutch Steve Irwin) and professor at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. This video was part of the original announcement of the discovery. Freek does a lot to teach the general public about animals, and that involves a lot of spectacular videos that seem reckless and dangerous, but he clearly knows what he's doing. He's been doing this for ages. I'm absolutely sure this wasn't an aquarium. I'm also pretty sure Freek knows more about how to safely approach snakes than you do.
- FartyMcFarter 3y ago
  > but he clearly knows what he's doing. So what is he doing to avoid getting eaten / spooking the snake?
  - kitd 3y ago
    I suspect he knows snake behaviour better than either of us. Maybe he can spot it is not hunting/has just eaten/is just patrolling its patch/idk, but is not dangerous at that moment. Animals that are hunting are normally hidden.
  - pvaldes 3y ago
    Wearing a loose white shirt is probably on purpose. Will make easier to the other members of the team to spot him in case of trouble and pull him out of the water. Also could divert a possible attack making easier to detach the snake head. Anacondas are famously unpredictable and got upset easily. Swimming with them is not a move driven by wisdom. My bet is that "avoiding an attack because I know how to handle it" is not so much the main objective here as: "in case of attack, film and rescue"
    - mcv 3y ago
      He is a TV maker, so it's definitely possible he considered the possibility of an attack as an upside rather than a downside. I hadn't thought about the loose shirt being a possible benefit; I thought he'd just jumped in in his office attire because he's an impulsive ADHD loon and it's not that deep and it makes good TV.
      - pvaldes 3y ago
        > He is a TV maker, so it's definitely possible he considered the possibility of an attack as an upside rather than a downside. Therefore degrading the profession of zoologist to clowns that put themselves on dangerous and stupid situations all the time to sell a TV series, that is the product advertised here.
deleted 3y ago
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littlestymaar 3y ago

How do you know the position of the camera? It could be 2 meters away and zoomed in.

pvaldes 3y ago
I can't know. But In some part of the video you can spot the sake head making a strange movement, like bumping into some invisible obstacle or something. Zooming into a dirt river does not made the dirt between the target and the lens disappear magically I'm just discussing the title suggesting that this video shows the biggest anaconda measured. This is obviously publicity. I have seen much bigger animals on photos or records. Is a big discovery so, why the need to lie about that?. I don't have any problem with the claim that a new species of anaconda had been discovered. What I dislike, a lot, is the banalization of the Biology with media disrespecting the zoologists and forcing them to adopt a Tarzan persona, and became children entertainers begging for aaws and oows. Congratulations to the Dutch Irwin for appearing in the Rivas article among the other twenty researchers, but if his apport was the video swimming with the snake, it was totally unnecessary.

mcv 3y ago

The diver in that video is Freek Vonk, famous Dutch TV biologist (basically the Dutch Steve Irwin) and professor at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. This video was part of the original announcement of the discovery. Freek does a lot to teach the general public about animals, and that involves a lot of spectacular videos that seem reckless and dangerous, but he clearly knows what he's doing. He's been doing this for ages. I'm absolutely sure this wasn't an aquarium. I'm also pretty sure Freek knows more about how to safely approach snakes than you do.

FartyMcFarter 3y ago
> but he clearly knows what he's doing. So what is he doing to avoid getting eaten / spooking the snake?
- kitd 3y ago
  I suspect he knows snake behaviour better than either of us. Maybe he can spot it is not hunting/has just eaten/is just patrolling its patch/idk, but is not dangerous at that moment. Animals that are hunting are normally hidden.
- pvaldes 3y ago
  Wearing a loose white shirt is probably on purpose. Will make easier to the other members of the team to spot him in case of trouble and pull him out of the water. Also could divert a possible attack making easier to detach the snake head. Anacondas are famously unpredictable and got upset easily. Swimming with them is not a move driven by wisdom. My bet is that "avoiding an attack because I know how to handle it" is not so much the main objective here as: "in case of attack, film and rescue"
  - mcv 3y ago
    He is a TV maker, so it's definitely possible he considered the possibility of an attack as an upside rather than a downside. I hadn't thought about the loose shirt being a possible benefit; I thought he'd just jumped in in his office attire because he's an impulsive ADHD loon and it's not that deep and it makes good TV.
    - pvaldes 3y ago
      > He is a TV maker, so it's definitely possible he considered the possibility of an attack as an upside rather than a downside. Therefore degrading the profession of zoologist to clowns that put themselves on dangerous and stupid situations all the time to sell a TV series, that is the product advertised here.

deleted 3y ago

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