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(IANS)

Some 47 million years ago, when our planet was warmer than it is today and much of its land swampy, a creature out of our most horrifying nightmares slithered through the jungles of Gujarat: a monstrous snake longer than a school bus!

Researchers Debajit Datta and Sunil Bajpai recently described a new specimen recovered from the Panandhro Lignite Mine in Kutch, Gujarat dating back to the Middle Eocene period. Dubbed Vasuki indicus after the legendary snake king coiled around the Hindu deity Shiva's neck, it could have reached a staggering 50 feet in length, making it a contender for the title of longest snake ever.

Vasuki's size rivalled that of Titanoboa, another colossal snake that lived in present-day Colombia 60 million years ago. Both these giants thrived during a period of scorching hot global temperatures, which seems to be a key factor in their growth as cold-blooded reptiles.

Despite its size, also comparable to that of the largest T. rex ever recorded, one wouldn’t have to worry too much about outrunning the ancient serpent. Weighing about 1,000 kilograms, this monstrous python wasn’t one to chase down its prey quickly and was most likely not venomous. But did this make it less dangerous? Not quite.

Scientists believe that ambushing unsuspecting victims and then using its immense size to constrict them into submission was more Vasuki’s style. Unlike its modern venomous cousins, it relied on pure muscle power.

“Vasuki was a majestic animal. It may well have been a gentle giant, resting its head on a high porch formed by coiling its massive body for most parts of the day or moving sluggishly through the swamp like an endless train. In some ways, it reminds me of Kaa from ‘The Jungle Book,'” Datta from IIT Roorkee said in reference to the fictional giant snake.

Meanwhile, this incredible discovery wasn't pulled from mythology. Sunil Bajpai had previously uncovered fragments of the snake’s backbone from western India in 2005. And recently, researchers were able to piece together Vasuki's story from 27 fossilised vertebrae found near a coal mine. These remains, along with nearby fossils of catfish, turtles, and even primitive whales, hint at the kind of prehistoric buffet the snake king might have enjoyed.

Meanwhile, Vasuki belonged to the now-extinct madtsoiidae family but represented a distinct lineage that originated in India, its closest relatives are other ancient snakes found in India and North Africa. This suggests that Vasuki's ancestors lived in India a long time ago — before India crashed into Asia. And this crash might have helped its kind disperse from India to Africa.

The findings of this study have been detailed in Scientific Reports and can be accessed here.

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Science

Unearthing Vasuki: IIT Scientists Find Massive 50-Foot-Long Snake That Lived in Gujarat 47 Million Years Ago