巨蟒是一种喜欢孤栖的生灵，神秘的原始沼泽和湖泊是它不容侵犯的王国。它是否也如眼镜王蛇一样以巨毒来维护自己帝王般尊严呢？巨蟒成为人们的朋友，甚至成为人们家中宠物是否是一种天方夜谈？看完巨蟒秘闻之二，您一定会感慨一番：噢，这个世界真奇妙！

Do Anacondas Bite?

Just about every species of snake on earth has teeth[1], but they are not used for chewing. Snakes' teeth are used for holding onto their prey, preventing them from escaping. Some snakes have venom[2] in two specially designed, extra long teeth (called fangs[3]) which they use to kill their prey. Anacondas have teeth, but they are not a venomous snake. They rely on their enormous size and power to subdue[4] their victims. It is possible to be bitten by an anaconda, but the bite itself would not be fatal (unless you bled to death[5]).

1． teeth：在原文中它的意思再普通不过了（指"牙齿"），但别小看了它呀！源自它的成语多着呢！比如我们经常可以从电视新闻中看到全副武装（armed to the teeth）的塞族和阿族军人。当我们看到北约不顾公众的反对（in spite of others' teeth），轰炸南联盟时都grind our teeth（恨得咬牙切齿）。
2． venom：在这儿它是指"（毒蛇的）毒液"，由此引申开来，我们也可以用它来指"恶意，怨恨"，比如有人憎恨他的女上司，一说起她就怒不可遏。--He hated that boss and spoke of her with venom.
3． fangs：毒蛇的毒牙。毒蛇有中空或带凹槽的毒牙以喷射毒液。这里讲到的大水蟒虽没有致人于死地（fatal）的毒牙，却有强大的力量将猎物盘卷起来使其窒息而死。
4． subdue：征服。大水蟒就是靠其天生的优势--庞大的身躯来征服对手的。
5． bled to death：血流不止而死。

　　　　　
　　　　　 　Snakes as Pets

For many people, snakes are a slithering[6], terrifying creature to be avoided at all costs[7], while others harbor a grim fascination or even fondness for[8] them. Many people keep snakes as pets, including anacondas and reticulated pythons. Like any other pet, snakes can be a big responsibility that should be taken seriously. If you choose to keep a snake in captivity[9] you must accept resonsibility for its care and feeding, as well as preventing it from escaping into the wild. If you are one of those people who thinks it would be really cool to have a pet snake you can visit these websites for more information:

Care of Snakes
Cold Blooded News
Bob Clark Captive Bred Reptiles