Dentist who came face to face with giant anaconda backs claim
by MARY MAGEE
THERE
has been incredible response to the recent story about Lisburn men Greg
and Mike Warner's expedition to the Peruvian Amazon where they
discovered evidence of a giant anaconda.
Since the story appeared three weeks ago on our website it has received the record number of hits and has gone global.
It has been picked up by newspapers in Korea and Portugal and a zoological website which also covered it has been receiving so many hits its system could not cope.
A Brazilian man, Andre Issi, has also contacted the Star to tell us that he has taken pictures of a 6 metre long Anaconda, the same snake the Warners found evidence of. Andre said he had come face to face with the snake while travelling along the Peruvian Amazon.
Andre,
who works as a dentist, confirmed the Warners' story and said he was
just yards from the snake.
He said he was travelling alone in a kayak from Brasilia to Santa Cararina three years ago when he came across the snake.
On closer inspection, Andre said he was shocked to find the giant snake dead.
He judged the length against that of the kayak in which he was travelling.
"I was travelling alone in a kayak from Brasilia to Santa Catarina on a long journey along 6000 km, crossing Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina," he wrote.
"In the city of Guaira I saw this anaconda floating in the river. I took a lots of pictures and film. It was about six metres and was near the trees. I had never seen an anaconda before and I became very nervous, because at the last moment I thought it was alive.
He said that since the story broke people on the web had been suggesting the picture was faked.
"Many people tried to prove that the photograph was false, speaking disrespectfully of me. I am interested in telling the real story about me to clear this up," he wrote.
Ulster Star
26/06/2009
