King brown snake

Last updated

King brown snake
Pseudechis australis ugmedia.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Pseudechis
Species:
P. australis
Binomial name
Pseudechis australis
(Gray, 1842)
King Brown Mulga Range.jpg
Range of king brown snake (in red)
Synonyms [2]
List
  • Naja australisGray, 1842
  • Pseudechis darwiniensisMacleay, 1878
  • Pseudechis cupreusBoulenger, 1896
  • Pseudechis platycephalusThomson, 1933
  • Denisonia brunneaMitchell, 1951
  • Cannia centralisWells & Wellington, 1985

The king brown snake (Pseudechis australis) is a species of highly venomous snake of the family Elapidae, native to northern, western, and Central Australia. The king brown snake is the largest terrestrial venomous snake in Australia. [3] Despite its common name, it is a member of the genus Pseudechis (black snakes) and only distantly related to true brown snakes. Its alternative common name is the mulga snake, although it lives in many habitats apart from mulga. First described by English zoologist John Edward Gray in 1842, it is a robust snake up to 3.3 m (11 ft) long. It is variable in appearance, with individuals from northern Australia having tan upper parts, while those from southern Australia are dark brown to blackish. Sometimes, it is seen in a reddish-green texture. The dorsal scales are two-toned, sometimes giving the snake a patterned appearance. Its underside is cream or white, often with orange splotches. The species is oviparous. The snake is considered to be a least-concern species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, though may have declined with the spread of the cane toad.

Contents

Its venom is not as potent as those of Australia's other dangerous snakes, but can still cause severe effects if delivered in large enough quantities. Its main effect is on striated muscle tissue, causing paralysis from muscle damage, and also commonly affects blood clotting (coagulopathy). Often, extensive pain and swelling occur, rarely with necrosis, at the bite site. Deaths from its bites have been recorded, with the most recent being in 1969. Its victims are treated with black snake (not brown snake) antivenom.

Taxonomy

King brown snake on roadside near Tibooburra King Brown Snake on roadside near Tiboobura.jpg
King brown snake on roadside near Tibooburra

The species was first described by English zoologist John Edward Gray in 1842 from a specimen collected at Port Essington in the Northern Territory. Gray saw little distinction from the Egyptian cobra (Naja haje) in his single preserved specimen—excepting the variation in ocular plates—and assigned the name Naja australis. [2] [4] On obtaining a second specimen from the College of Surgeons, Albert Günther of the British Museum recognised an affinity with the Australian species described as Pseudechis porphyriacus , resulting in the current combination as Pseudechis australis in the black snake genus Pseudechis . [5] Scottish-Australian naturalist William Macleay described Pseudechis darwiniensis in 1878, from a more slender specimen that he thought was distinct from P. australis. [6] Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger described P. cupreus in 1896 from a specimen collected from the Murray River, distinguishing P. darwiniensis from P. australis by the shape of the frontal scale. [7] Austrian zoologist Franz Werner described Pseudechis denisonioides from Eradu, Western Australia in 1909. [8] Australian naturalist Donald Thomson obtained a skull of a large specimen with a wide head collected from East Alligator River in Arnhem Land in 1914, naming it Pseudechis platycephalus in 1933. He distinguished it from P. australis on the basis of it having anteriorly grooved palatine and pterygoid teeth, and having blunt ridges and keels on the dorsal scales. [9]

In 1955, Australian herpetologist Roy Mackay concluded that several species previously described were synonymous with P. australis, recognising that it was a highly variable taxon. He noted that P. australis had frontal scales of variable shape, and that grooves were present on the teeth of many specimens of Pseudechis, so these features did not support separate species. [10] Australian herpetologists Richard W. Wells and C. Ross Wellington described Cannia centralis in 1985 from a 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) specimen collected 8 km (5 mi) north of Tennant Creek in 1977, distinguishing it on the basis of a narrow head; [11] however, the distinction was not supported by other authors. [2] Two new species and a new genus have been described within this complex by Australian snake-handler Raymond Hoser—the eastern dwarf mulga snake (P. pailsei) from near Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia, [12] and the Papuan pygmy mulga snake (P. rossignolii), found in Irian Jaya. [13] Hoser later also resurrected the pygmy mulga snake (P. weigeli, originally described as Cannia weigeli by Wells and Wellington in 1987 [14] ). These descriptions were initially received with skepticism due to the low level of evidence provided in the original descriptions. [15]

The species was long regarded as monotypic and highly variable until German biologist Ulrich Kuch and colleagues analysed the mitochondrial DNA of specimens across its range in 2005. They recovered four distinct lineages (clades); clade I (a New Guinea lineage of smaller snakes) diverged from the rest between six and four million years ago (Late Miocene to Early Pliocene), with the other three diverging in the Pleistocene. Clade II corresponded to a lineage of large snakes found across Australia, clade III was a dwarf form from the Kimberley, and clade IV contained two dwarf forms from northwestern Queensland and the Northern Territory, each of which was likely to be a distinct species. [16] In 2017, British herpetologist Simon Maddock and colleagues published a genetic analysis using mitochondrial DNA on the genus, and confirmed clade I was P. rossignoli, clade II was P. australis, clade III is an as yet unnamed dwarf species, and clade IV is P. pailsi and P. weigeli. They also determined that P. australis was most closely related to P. butleri, the spotted mulga snake. [17]

Australian medical researcher Struan Sutherland pointed out that the name "king brown snake" is a problem, as its venom is not neutralised by brown snake antivenom, which could endanger snake bite victims; he recommended dropping the name and the old term "Darwin brown snake", and using "mulga snake", instead. [18] Further complicating the issue, the term "king brown snake" has been applied to any large brown snake. Australian snake expert Glenn Shea has also pointed out that "mulga snake" has issues in that the species lives in a wide range of habitats in addition to mulga. [19] It has also been called the "Pilbara cobra". [20] Australian zoologist Gerard Krefft called it the orange-bellied brown snake. [21] In the Kaytetye language spoken in Central Australia, it is known as atetherr-ayne-wene, "budgerigar-eater". [22] The term "king brown" refers to the great size of individuals in the north and northwest of Australia, which can exceed 3 m (10 ft) in length; it is the largest and most dangerous elapid of those regions. In Southwest Australia, where the species is up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in), it is also known as the common mulga snake, distinguishing it from the spotted mulga snake Pseudechis butleri. [23]

Description

Adult snake with prominent two-toned scales giving a reticulated pattern Pseudechis australis 2.jpg
Adult snake with prominent two-toned scales giving a reticulated pattern

Australia's largest venomous snake, the king brown snake can reach 2.0 to 2.5 m (6.6 to 8.2 ft) in length with a weight of 3 to 6 kg (6.6 to 13.2 lb), [16] with males around 20% larger than females. [24] The longest confirmed individual was 3.3 m (11 ft) in length. [25] The king brown snake is robust, with a head slightly wider than the body, prominent cheeks and small eyes with red-brown irises, [25] and a dark tongue. [26] The head is demarcated from the body by a slight neck. [27] Scales on the upper-parts, flanks and tail are two toned—pale or greenish yellow at the base and various shades of tan or copper, or all shades of brown from pale to blackish towards the rear. This gives the snake a reticulated pattern. The tail is often darker, while the crown is the same colour as the body. [25] The belly is cream, white or salmon and can have orange marks. [27]

The colours of the snakes' upper parts and sides differ from area to area within their range; those from northern Australia are tan, those from deserts in Central Australia have prominent white marks on each scale, giving a patterned appearance, and those from southern parts of its range are darker, [27] even blackish. [25] In Western Australia, king brown snakes south of a line through Jurien Bay, Badgingarra, New Norcia, and Quairading are significantly darker in colour. [28]

Scalation

The number and arrangement of scales on a snake's body are key elements of identification to species level. [29] The king brown snake has 17 rows of dorsal scales at mid-body, 185 to 225 ventral scales, 50 to 75 subcaudal scales (all undivided, or anterior ones undivided and posterior divided, or all divided), and a divided anal scale. [27] The temporolabial scale and last (sixth) supralabial scale (both above the snake's mouth) are fused in the eastern brown snake (Pseudonaja textilis) but separate in the king brown snake. [19]

The king brown snake can be confused with brown snakes of the genus Pseudonaja , the olive python (Liasis olivaceus), water python (Liasis fuscus), spotted mulga snake, or coastal taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus) where they co-occur. [30]

Distribution and habitat

King brown snakes occur in all states of Australia except for Victoria and Tasmania. [31] It has become rare or vanished from parts of coastal Queensland. [32] The eastern limit of its range runs from Gladstone in central Queensland, and south through Gayndah, Dalby, the Warrumbungles, southwest to Condobolin and the vicinity of Balranald and then across to Port Pirie in South Australia. The southwestern limit of its range runs from Ceduna in South Australia, west through the northern Nullarbor Plain to Kalgoorlie, Narrogin and on coastal plains north of Perth. [19]

King brown snakes are habitat generalists, [24] inhabiting woodlands, hummock grasslands, chenopod scrublands, and gibber or sandy deserts nearly devoid of vegetation. [25] Within the arid to semiarid parts of their range, however, they prefer areas of greater moisture such as watercourses. [24]

They are often observed at modified habitats such as wheat fields, rubbish piles, and vacated buildings; individuals may become trapped in mine shafts and wellbores. [23] Fieldwork near Alice Springs showed that they prefer areas with buffel grass ( Cenchrus ciliaris ), a common introduced weed in Central Australia, possibly because of the dense, year-round cover it provides. [33]

Behaviour

The king brown snake is mostly crepuscular—active at dusk, [31] and is less active during the middle of the day and between midnight and dawn, retiring to crevices in the soil, old animal burrows, or under rocks or logs. During warmer months, its activity shifts to later after dusk and into the evening. [25] Across its range, it is more active during the day in cooler climates and at night in hotter climates. [24]

Reproduction

The breeding season begins with males engaging in wrestling combat, each attempting to push the other over for the right to mate with a female. Mating follows—in the early Southern Hemisphere spring in southwest Western Australia, mid-spring in the Eyre Peninsula, and with the wet season in the north of the country. [25] The species is oviparous, with one unverified claim of viviparity. [24] Females produce a clutch of four to 19 eggs, averaging around 10, [34] with longer females laying larger clutches, [25] generally 39 to 45 days after mating has taken place. [35] Eggs take about 70 to 100 days to hatch. [25] The incubating temperature has been recorded as between 22 and 32 °C (72 and 90 °F). [36] The eggs average 40.1 mm (1+5⁄8 in) in length by 22.9 mm (7⁄8 in) in width and weigh 13.1 g (0.46 oz) each. [37] Baby snakes average 22.6 cm (8+7⁄8 in) in length and weigh 9.4 g (0.33 oz) on hatching. [38]

King brown snakes have been reported to live up to 25 years in captivity. [39]

Diet

The king brown snake is a generalist predator, preying on frogs, lizards including small monitors, skinks, geckos and agamids, other snakes including whip snakes, brown snakes, the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), southern shovel-nosed snake (Brachyurophis semifasciatus), Gould's hooded snake (Parasuta gouldii) and crowned snake (Elapognathus coronatus), birds such as thornbills, and small mammals such as rodents and dasyurids. [24] and spiders such as tarantulas, mouse spiders, and the infamous funnel-web spiders. The species has been reported eating roadkill, as well as the sloughed skins of other reptiles, and is known to exhibit cannibalism. Specimens in captivity have been observed eating their own faeces. [23] It is opportunistic, eating a higher proportion of frogs in wetter areas. [24]

King brown snakes are sensitive to cane toad toxins and have died after eating them. [40] Despite this, field research before and after the arrival of cane toads to the Adelaide River floodplain in the Northern Territory did not show a decline in king brown snake numbers, though this could have been coincidental; the population of this species had already declined in the region. [41]

Venom

The king brown snake accounted for 4% of identified snakebites in Australia between 2005 and 2015, with no deaths recorded. [42] The last recorded death occurred in 1969, [43] when a 20-year-old man was bitten while reaching around for a packet of cigarettes under his bed in Three Springs, Western Australia. The man was treated over two days, with twice daily injections of death adder, brown snake and tiger snake antivenin, yet died in 37 hours despite this medical attention. This incident led to the introduction of Papuan black snake antivenom for treatment of king brown snake envenomation. [44] Before this it had been confirmed in one fatality and suspected in another in the early 1960s. [45] Venomous snakes normally only bite humans when disturbed. King brown snakes have been noted, however, to bite people who were asleep at the time. [43] [46] Furthermore, a significant number of victims have been snake handlers. These have resulted in a high proportion of bites occurring on upper limbs. [43] The king brown snake is classified as a snake of medical importance by the World Health Organization. [47] [lower-alpha 1]

The king brown snake can bite repeatedly and chew to envenomate a victim. [48] Considerable pain, swelling, and tissue damage often occur at the site of a king brown snake bite. [43] Local necrosis has been recorded. [49] In 1998, a person bitten 9–12 times on his arm required an amputation of the envenomed limb. [43] He reported later that he had impulsively decided to commit suicide by placing his hand in a bag with a king brown snake inside and stirring it up. [50] A large king brown snake delivers on average 180 mg of venom in one bite. A 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) long king brown snake milked by snake handler John Cann produced 1350 mg, and then 580, 920, and 780 mg at three, four, and five months after the first milking. [48] This record was broken in 2016, when a king brown snake named "Chewie"—also 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) long—produced 1500 mg of venom at the Australian Reptile Park. [51] The volume of venom produced in laboratories is equivalent to the amounts produced by the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) and gaboon adder (Bitis gabonica). [23] In a laboratory experiment on mice, not only did the king brown snake inject far more venom than other species of dangerous snake, very little of its venom (0.07 mg of 62 mg) was left on the skin. [52] When using 0.1% bovine serum albumin in saline rather than saline alone, the venom has a murine median lethal dose (LD50) of 1.91 mg/kg (0.866 mg/lb) when administered subcutaneously. [53]

The main toxic agents of king brown snake venom are myotoxins hazardous to striated muscles and kidney cells. [31] Toxic effects are proportional to the amount of venom in the victim. Nonspecific symptoms of poisoning are common and include nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, generalized sweating (diaphoresis), and headache. Impaired clotting (coagulopathy) is common, and can be diagnosed with an elevated activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT). Symptoms of myotoxicity (muscle damage) include muscle pain and weakness in the presence of an elevated creatine kinase (CK). King brown snake venom has some haemolytic activity, and some patients get a short-term fall in red blood cells. [49]

A major component of king brown snake venom are phospholipase A2 enzymes, which have diverse effects that are commonly found in snake venoms. [48] These proteins are directly toxic on muscle tissue due to their sheer volume in the venom, and are destructive to cell membranes and liberate lysophospholipids (involved in cell lysis) and arachidonate (a precursor in inflammatory response). Their venom can lead to rhabdomyolysis. [54] Despite containing a number of agents with phospholipase A2 activity, king brown snake venom exhibits little neurotoxicity. [55]

The venom has multiple proteins with antibiotic activity, including two L-amino-acid oxidases (LAO1 and LAO2) that exhibit activity against the pathogenic bacterium Aeromonas hydrophila , which is commonly present in frogs. Also present are three protein isoforms of transferrin; transferrin binds serum iron (Fe3+), which makes the environment less hospitable for bacteria and hence has an antibiotic effect. [55] Pseudechetoxin and pseudecin are two proteins that block cyclic nucleotide–gated ion channels, including those present in retinal photoreceptors and olfactory receptor neurons. [56]

Treatment

King brown snake at the Armadale Reptile Centre Pseudechis australis 01 gnangarra.jpg
King brown snake at the Armadale Reptile Centre

Standard first-aid treatment for any suspected bite from a venomous snake uses a pressure bandage to the bite site. The victims should move as little as possible and be conveyed to a hospital or clinic, where they should be monitored for at least 24 hours. The tetanus vaccine is given, though the mainstay of treatment is the administration of the appropriate antivenom. [57] Black-snake antivenom is used to treat bites from this species. Christopher Johnston and colleagues propose giving antivenom immediately if king brown snake envenoming is suspected, as a delay of more than two hours did not prevent muscle damage in a review of treated snakebite victims. They add that it is reasonable to assume that if a snakebite victim had a raised aPTT and signs of haemolysis, then a king brown snake is the culprit. [49] Shahab Razavi and colleagues add that more than one vial of antivenom might be needed if envenoming is severe. [43]

Captivity

King brown snakes are readily available in Australia via breeding in captivity. They are regarded as straightforward to keep, due to the low likelihood of biting and relatively low toxicity of their venom, [39] though the potentially large amount injected makes it more hazardous. [48]

Conservation and threats

The king brown snake is considered to be a least-concern species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. [1] Small snakes may be eaten by birds of prey. In contrast, old snakes are frequently infested with ticks. [25]

Culture

Mutitjulu Waterhole at Uluru marks the site of the battle between two Central Australian ancestral beings Kuniya (woma python woman) and Liru (king brown snake man). Here, Kuniya avenged the death of her nephew, who was fatally speared by Liru, by striking him with her digging stick. [58]

Among the Djambarrpuyngu clan of the Yolngu people in northeastern Arnhem Land, King Brown Snake is the Ngurruyurrtjurr ancestor, and its homeland is Flinders Point in Arnhem Land. [59]

Known as darrpa to indigenous people of East Arnhem land, the king brown snake was historically responsible for deaths there. Folk treatment involved capturing the snake and watching it bleed, which would supposedly make the victim recover. If the snake were killed, its victim would die also. Another folk remedy involved blowing smoke through a hollow branch or pandanus leaf onto the victim sitting by a campfire. If the smoke resembled the mali, or immaterial form, of a snake, then the person would die, as the victim of a ragalk (sorcerer). [60]

In Kunwinjku country in West Arnhem Land, the king brown snake is known as dadbe. [61] The Kurulk clan would not collect white paint from a site in the wet season, as they believed it was the snake's faeces, and they were afraid of its anger. [62]

Kurrmurnnyini is a lagoon and complex of sandstone outcrops near Borroloola in the southwestern Gulf Country in the Northern Territory. Here the King Brown Snake Ancestral Being—balngarrangarra in Gudanji and ngulwa in Yanyuwa—was sleeping about 1.5 km (0.93 mi) north of the lagoon when it was disturbed by ngabaya—ancestral spirit men. Angrily, he bit the rocks, which became tainted and poisonous, and an instrument of narnu‐bulabula (sorcery). Local sorcerers would cast a spell by inserting a potential victim's item of clothing in a hole in the rock or sharpening a stick and calling out their name while inserting it in the rock face. The victim would then perish. Only men descended from King Brown Snake Ancestor could be sorcerers, though others might hire them. Local people feared and avoided the location. [63]

The title character picks up a king brown snake in the 1986 film Crocodile Dundee . [64]

Notes

  1. ↑ Snakes of Medical Importance include those with highly dangerous venom resulting in high rates of morbidity and mortality, or those that are common agents in snakebite. [47]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antivenom</span> Medical treatment for venomous bites and stings

Antivenom, also known as antivenin, venom antiserum, and antivenom immunoglobulin, is a specific treatment for envenomation. It is composed of antibodies and used to treat certain venomous bites and stings. Antivenoms are recommended only if there is significant toxicity or a high risk of toxicity. The specific antivenom needed depends on the species involved. It is given by injection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mamba</span> Genus of venomous snakes

Mambas are fast-moving, highly venomous snakes of the genus Dendroaspis in the family Elapidae. Four extant species are recognised currently; three of those four species are essentially arboreal and green in colour, whereas the black mamba, Dendroaspis polylepis, is largely terrestrial and generally brown or grey in colour. All are native to various regions in sub-Saharan Africa and all are feared throughout their ranges, especially the black mamba. In Africa there are many legends and stories about mambas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snakebite</span> Injury caused by bite from snakes

A snakebite is an injury caused by the bite of a snake, especially a venomous snake. A common sign of a bite from a venomous snake is the presence of two puncture wounds from the animal's fangs. Sometimes venom injection from the bite may occur. This may result in redness, swelling, and severe pain at the area, which may take up to an hour to appear. Vomiting, blurred vision, tingling of the limbs, and sweating may result. Most bites are on the hands, arms, or legs. Fear following a bite is common with symptoms of a racing heart and feeling faint. The venom may cause bleeding, kidney failure, a severe allergic reaction, tissue death around the bite, or breathing problems. Bites may result in the loss of a limb or other chronic problems or even death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger snake</span> Highly venomous snake native to southern Australia and Tasmania

The tiger snake is a large and highly venomous snake of southern Australia, including its coastal islands and Tasmania. These snakes are often observed and locally well known by their banding, black and yellow like a tiger, although the species can be highly variable in colouration and patterning. All populations are classified within the genus Notechis (Elapidae). Their diverse characteristics have been classified either as distinct species or by subspecies and regional variation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inland taipan</span> Highly venomous snake native to Australia

The inland taipan, also commonly known as the western taipan, small-scaled snake, or fierce snake, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to semiarid regions of central east Australia. Aboriginal Australians living in those regions named the snake dandarabilla. It was formally described by Frederick McCoy in 1879 and then by William John Macleay in 1882, but for the next 90 years, it was a mystery to the scientific community; no further specimens were found, and virtually nothing was added to the knowledge of this species until its rediscovery in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern brown snake</span> Highly venomous snake native to Australia

The eastern brown snake, often referred to as the common brown snake, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to eastern and central Australia and southern New Guinea. It was first described by André Marie Constant Duméril, Gabriel Bibron, and Auguste Duméril in 1854. The adult eastern brown snake has a slender build and can grow to 2 m (7 ft) in length. The colour of its surface ranges from pale brown to black, while its underside is pale cream-yellow, often with orange or grey splotches. The eastern brown snake is found in most habitats except dense forests, often in farmland and on the outskirts of urban areas, as such places are populated by its main prey, the house mouse. The species is oviparous. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the snake as a least-concern species, though its status in New Guinea is unclear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-bellied black snake</span> Venomous snake native to eastern Australia

The red-bellied black snake is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae, indigenous to Australia. Originally described by George Shaw in 1794 as a species new to science, it is one of eastern Australia's most commonly encountered snakes. Averaging around 1.25 m in length, it has glossy black upperparts, bright red or orange flanks, and a pink or dull red belly. It is not aggressive and generally retreats from human encounters, but can attack if provoked. Although its venom can cause significant illness, no deaths have been recorded from its bite, which is less venomous than other Australian elapid snakes. The venom contains neurotoxins, myotoxins, and coagulants and has haemolytic properties. Victims can also lose their sense of smell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black mamba</span> Species of venomous snake

The black mamba is a species of highly venomous snake belonging to the family Elapidae. It is native to parts of sub-Saharan Africa. First formally described by Albert Günther in 1864, it is the second-longest venomous snake after the king cobra; mature specimens generally exceed 2 m and commonly grow to 3 m (9.8 ft). Specimens of 4.3 to 4.5 m have been reported. Its skin colour varies from grey to dark brown. Juvenile black mambas tend to be paler than adults and darken with age. Despite the common name, the skin of a black mamba is not black; the color name describes rather the inside of its mouth, which it displays when feeling threatened.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian cobra</span> Species of snake

The Indian cobra, also known commonly as the spectacled cobra, Asian cobra, or binocellate cobra, is a species of cobra, a venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to the Indian subcontinent, and is a member of the "big four" species that are responsible for the most snakebite cases in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monocled cobra</span> Species of snake

The monocled cobra, also called monocellate cobra and Indian spitting cobra, is a venomous cobra species widespread across South and Southeast Asia and listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caspian cobra</span> Species of snake

The Caspian cobra, also called the Central Asian cobra or Russian cobra, is a species of highly venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Central Asia. First described by Karl Eichwald, a German physician, in 1831, it was for many years considered to be a subspecies of the Naja naja until genetic analysis revealed it to be a distinct species.

<i>Pseudonaja</i> Genus of snakes

Pseudonaja is a genus of highly venomous elapid snakes native to Australia. Species of this genus are known commonly as brown snakes and are considered to be some of the most dangerous snakes in the world; even young snakes are capable of delivering a fatal envenomation to a human.

<i>Naja</i> Genus of snakes

Naja is a genus of venomous elapid snakes commonly known as cobras. Members of the genus Naja are the most widespread and the most widely recognized as "true" cobras. Various species occur in regions throughout Africa, Southwest Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Several other elapid species are also called "cobras", such as the king cobra and the rinkhals, but neither is a true cobra, in that they do not belong to the genus Naja, but instead each belong to monotypic genera Hemachatus and Ophiophagus.

<i>Pseudechis</i> Genus of snakes

Pseudechis is a genus of venomous snakes in the family Elapidae. It contains the group of elapid species commonly referred to as the black snakes. Species of Pseudechis are found in every Australian state with the exception of Tasmania, and some species are found in Papua New Guinea. They inhabit a variety of habitat types, from arid areas to swampland. All species are dangerous and can inflict a potentially lethal bite. Most snakes in this genus reach about 2 m (6.6 ft) in total length, and vary in colour. Some species are brown, whereas others are black. The most recognisable and widespread species in the genus are the red-bellied black snake and the mulga snake. These snakes feed on lizards, frogs, birds, small mammals, and even other snakes. All species of Pseudechis lay eggs with the exception of the red-bellied black snake P. porphyriacus which is viviparous. The genus Pailsus is a synonym of Pseudechis, and more work is needed to understand species limits among the smaller species of the group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collett's snake</span> Highly venomous snake native to northeastern Australia

Collett's snake, also commonly known as Collett's black snake, Collett's cobra, or Down's tiger snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Australia. Collett's snake is capable of delivering a fatal bite and is considered the nineteenth most venomous snake in the world.

The spotted mulga snake, also known commonly as Butler's black snake and Butler's snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Western Australia. It is a member of the genus Pseudechis, dangerously venomous snakes that can intimidate an opponent by raising the head and presenting a hood. This cobra-like threat display is supported by the ability to produce a very large amount of venom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coastal taipan</span> Venomous snake species native to Australia

The coastal taipan, or common taipan, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the family Elapidae. Described by Wilhelm Peters in 1867, the species is native to the coastal regions of northern and eastern Australia and the island of New Guinea. The second-longest venomous snake in Australia, the coastal taipan averages around 2.0 m (6.6 ft) long, with the longest specimens reaching 2.9 m (9.5 ft) in length. It has light olive or reddish-brown upperparts, with paler underparts. The snake is considered to be a least-concern species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The Papuan black snake is a highly venomous snake of the family Elapidae native to New Guinea. Reaching around 2 m in length, it is a predominantly black snake coloured grey underneath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epidemiology of snakebites</span>

Most snakebites are caused by non-venomous snakes. Of the roughly 3,700 known species of snake found worldwide, only 15% are considered dangerous to humans. Snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica. There are two major families of venomous snakes, Elapidae and Viperidae. 325 species in 61 genera are recognized in the family Elapidae and 224 species in 22 genera are recognized in the family Viperidae, In addition, the most diverse and widely distributed snake family, the colubrids, has approximately 700 venomous species, but only five genera—boomslangs, twig snakes, keelback snakes, green snakes, and slender snakes—have caused human fatalities.

References

  1. 1 2 "Pseudechis australis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017. e.T42493195A42493211. 2017. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T42493195A42493211.en .
  2. 1 2 3 Australian Biological Resources Study (11 January 2017). "Species Pseudechis australis (Gray, 1842)". Australian Faunal Directory. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Australian Government. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  3. ↑ Razavi, S., Weinstein, S. A., Bates, D. J., Alfred, S., & White, J. (2014). The Australian mulga snake (Pseudechis australis: Elapidae): Report of a large case series of bites and review of current knowledge. Toxicon, 85, 17–26.
  4. ↑ Gray, John Edward (1842). "Description of some hitherto unrecorded species of Australian reptiles and batrachians". Zoological Miscellany. 3: 51–57 [55].
  5. ↑ Günther, Albert Carl Ludwig Gotthilf (1863). "Third account of new species of snakes in the collection of the British Museum". The Annals and Magazine of Natural History; Zoology, Botany, and Geology. 12 (71): 348–365 [362]. doi:10.1080/00222936308681536.
  6. ↑ Macleay, William John (1878). "Notes on a collection of snakes from Port Darwin". Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. 2: 219–222.
  7. ↑ Boulenger, George Albert (1896). Catalogue of the snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Vol. 3. London: British Museum (Natural History). Department of Zoology. pp. 329–330.
  8. ↑ Werner, Franz (1909). Die Fauna Südwest-Australiens. Vol. 2. Jena, G. Fischer. p. 258.
  9. ↑ Thomson, Donald F. (1933). "Notes on Australian Snakes of the Genera Pseudechis and Oxyuranus". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 103 (4): 855–860. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1933.tb01629.x.
  10. ↑ Mackay, Roy D. (1953–54). "A revision of the genus Pseudechis". Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. 74th: 15–23.
  11. ↑ Wells, Richard W.; Wellington, C. Ross (1985). "A classification of the Amphibia and Reptilia of Australia" (PDF). Australian Journal of Herpetology, Supplemental Series . 1: 1–61 [45]. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-19. Retrieved 2019-04-18.
  12. ↑ Hoser, Raymond (1998). "A new snake from Queensland, Australia (Serpentes: Elapidae)". Monitor. 10 (1): 5–9, 31.
  13. ↑ Hoser, Raymond (2000). "A New Species of Snake (Serpentes: Elapidae) from Irian Jaya". Litteratura Serpentium. 20 (6): 178–186.
  14. ↑ Wells, R. W.; Wellington, C. R. (1987). "A new species of proteroglyphous snake (Serpentes: Oxyuranidae) from Australia". Australian Herpetologist. 503: 1–8.
  15. ↑ Wüster, W.; Bush, B.; Keogh, J.S.; O'Shea, M.; Shine, R. (2001). "Taxonomic contributions in the "amateur" literature: comments on recent descriptions of new genera and species by Raymond Hoser" (PDF). Litteratura Serpentium. 21: 67. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-08-09.
  16. 1 2 Kuch, Ulrich; Keogh, J. Scott; Weigel, John; Smith, Laurie A.; Mebs, Dietrich (2005). "Phylogeography of Australia's king brown snake (Pseudechis australis) reveals Pliocene divergence and Pleistocene dispersal of a top predator" (PDF). Naturwissenschaften. 92 (3): 121–127. Bibcode:2005NW.....92..121K. doi:10.1007/s00114-004-0602-0. PMID   15688185. S2CID   26068662. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-14. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  17. ↑ Maddock, Simon T.; Childerstone, Aaron; Fry, Byan Greig; Williams, David J.; Barlow, Axel; Wüster, Wolfgang (2017). "Multi-locus phylogeny and species delimitation of Australo-Papuan blacksnakes (Pseudechis Wagler, 1830: Elapidae: Serpentes)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 107 (107): 48–55. Bibcode:2017MolPE.107...48M. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.09.005. PMID   27637992.
  18. ↑ Sutherland & Tibballs 2001, p. 146.
  19. 1 2 3 Shea, Glenn M. (1999). "The distribution and identification of dangerously venomous Australian terrestrial snakes". Australian Veterinary Journal. 77 (12): 791–798. doi: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.1999.tb12947.x . PMID   10685181. S2CID   34609322.
  20. ↑ "Mulga Snake". Alice Springs Desert Park . Northern Territory Government. 20 March 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  21. ↑ Krefft, Gerard (1869). The Snakes of Australia: An Illustrated and Descriptive Catalogue of All the Known Species. South Africa: Government Printer. p.  47. australis.
  22. ↑ Turpin, Myfany (2013). "Semantic Extension in Kaytetye Flora and Fauna Terms". Australian Journal of Linguistics. 33 (4): 488–518. doi:10.1080/07268602.2013.857571. S2CID   62767948.
  23. 1 2 3 4 Browne-Cooper, R.; Bush, B.; Maryan, B.; Robinson, D. (2007). Reptiles and frogs in the bush : southwestern Australia. University of Western Australia Press. pp. 259–260. ISBN   9781920694746.
  24. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Shine, Richard (1987). "The Evolution of Viviparity: Ecological Correlates of Reproductive Mode within a Genus of Australian Snakes (Pseudechis: Elapidae)". Copeia. 1987 (3): 551–563. doi:10.2307/1445650. JSTOR   1445650.
  25. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Beatson, Cecilie (25 November 2018). "Mulga Snake". Animal Species. Australian Museum. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
  26. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 243.
  27. 1 2 3 4 Mirtschin, Rasmussen & Weinstein 2017, p. 114.
  28. ↑ Smith, L.A. (1982). "Variation in Pseudechis australis (Serpentes:Elapidae) in Western Australia and description of a new species of Pseudechis" (PDF). Records of the Western Australian Museum. 10 (1): 35–45.
  29. ↑ Hutchinson, Mark; Williams, Ian (2018). "Key to the Snakes of South Australia" (PDF). South Australian Museum. Government of South Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
  30. ↑ Watharow, Simon (2011). Living with Snakes and Other Reptiles. Melbourne, Victoria: Csiro Publishing. p. 68. ISBN   978-0-643-10381-8.
  31. 1 2 3 Mirtschin, Rasmussen & Weinstein 2017, p. 115.
  32. ↑ "Mulga Snake". Animals of Queensland. The State of Queensland (Queensland Museum). Retrieved 26 August 2019.
  33. ↑ Mcdonald, Peter James; Luck, Gary W. (2013). "Density of an environmental weed predicts the occurrence of the king brown snake (Pseudechis australis) in central Australia". Herpetological Journal. 23: 161–165.
  34. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 225.
  35. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 218.
  36. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 232.
  37. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 231.
  38. ↑ Greer 1997, p. 234.
  39. 1 2 Eipper, Scott (2012). A Guide To—Australian Snakes in Captivity: Elapids & Colubrids. Burleigh, Queensland: Reptile Publications. pp. 222–228. ISBN   978-0-98-724478-9.
  40. ↑ Shine, Richard (2010). "The Ecological Impact of Invasive Cane Toads (Bufo Marinus) in Australia". The Quarterly Review of Biology. 85 (3): 253–291. doi:10.1086/655116. PMID   20919631. S2CID   20689582.
  41. ↑ Brown, Gregory P.; Phillips, Benjamin L.; Shine, Richard (2011). "The ecological impact of invasive cane toads on tropical snakes: Field data do not support laboratory-based predictions". Ecology. 92 (2): 422–431. Bibcode:2011Ecol...92..422B. doi:10.1890/10-0536.1. PMID   21618921. S2CID   25388901.
  42. ↑ Johnston, Christopher I.; Ryan, Nicole M.; Page, Colin B.; Buckley, Nicholas A.; Brown, Simon G. A.; O'Leary, Margaret A.; Isbister, Geoffrey K. (2017). "The Australian Snakebite Project, 2005–2015 (ASP-20)" (PDF). Medical Journal of Australia. 207 (3): 119–125. doi:10.5694/mja17.00094. hdl: 1959.13/1354903 . PMID   28764620. S2CID   19567016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-10-06. Retrieved 2019-02-26.
  43. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Razavi, Shahab; Weinstein, Scott A.; Bates, David J.; Alfred, Sam; White, Julian (2014). "The Australian mulga snake (Pseudechis australis: Elapidae): Report of a large case series of bites and review of current knowledge". Toxicon. 85: 17–26. Bibcode:2014Txcn...85...17R. doi:10.1016/j.toxicon.2014.04.003. PMID   24726467.
  44. ↑ Rowlands, J. B.; Mastaglia, F. L.; Kakulas, B, A.; Hainsworth, D. (1969). "Clinical and pathological aspects of a fatal case of mulga (Pseudechis australis) snakebite". Medical Journal of Australia. 1 (5): 226–230. doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.1969.tb117007.x. PMID   5777902. S2CID   36287963.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  45. ↑ Trinca, G. F. (1963). "The treatment of snakebite". Medical Journal of Australia. 50 (1): 275–280. doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.1963.tb27211.x. PMID   13994169. S2CID   31846703.
  46. ↑ "Your Next Nightmare: Venomous Snake Bites People in Their Sleep". LiveScience . 22 April 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  47. 1 2 WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization. "Guidelines for the production, control and regulation of snake antivenom immunoglobulins" (PDF). WHO Technical Report Series (964): 224–226. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  48. 1 2 3 4 Sutherland & Tibballs 2001, p. 148.
  49. 1 2 3 Johnston, C. I.; Brown, S. G. A.; O'Leary, M. A.; Currie, B. J.; Greenberg, R.; Taylor, M.; Barnes, C.; White, J.; Isbister, G. K. (2013). "Mulga snake (Pseudechis australis) envenoming: a spectrum of myotoxicity, anticoagulant coagulopathy, haemolysis and the role of early antivenom therapy—Australian Snakebite Project (ASP-19)". Clinical Toxicology. 51 (5): 417–424. doi:10.3109/15563650.2013.787535. PMID   23586640. S2CID   25917274.
  50. ↑ Adlam, Nigel (13 February 2009). "How I Let a King Brown Bite Me Nine Times" (PDF). Odatria (2): 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 March 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  51. ↑ "2.5m-long king brown snake sets new mark from a single milking". Central Coast Gosford Express Advocate. 7 April 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  52. ↑ Morrison, J.J.; Pearn, J.H.; Charles, N.T.; Coulter, A.R. (1983). "Further studies on the mass of venom injected by elapid snakes". Toxicon. 21 (2): 279–284. Bibcode:1983Txcn...21..279M. doi:10.1016/0041-0101(83)90012-0. PMID   6857711.
  53. ↑ Broad, A. J.; Sutherland, S. K.; Coulter, A. R. (1979). "The lethality in mice of dangerous Australian and other snake venom". Toxicon. 17 (6): 661–664. Bibcode:1979Txcn...17..661B. doi:10.1016/0041-0101(79)90245-9. PMID   524395.
  54. ↑ Razavi, S., Weinstein, S. A., Bates, D. J., Alfred, S., & White, J. (2014). The Australian mulga snake (Pseudechis australis: Elapidae): Report of a large case series of bites and review of current knowledge. Toxicon, 85, 17–26.
  55. 1 2 Georgieva, Dessislava; Seifert, Jana; öHler, Michaela; von Bergen, Martin; Spencer, Patrick; Arni, Raghuvir K.; Genov, Nicolay; Betzel, Christian (2011). "Pseudechis australis venomics: Adaptation for a defense against microbial pathogens and recruitment of body transferrin" (PDF). Journal of Proteome Research. 10 (5): 2440–2464. doi:10.1021/pr101248e. PMID   21417486. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-08-25. Retrieved 2019-08-25.
  56. ↑ Mirtschin, Rasmussen & Weinstein 2017, p. 116.
  57. ↑ Gutiérrez, José María; Calvete, Juan J.; Habib, Abdulrazaq G.; Harrison, Robert A.; Williams, David J.; Warrell, David A. (2017). "Snakebite envenoming" (PDF). Nature Reviews Disease Primers. 3 (3): 17063. doi: 10.1038/nrdp.2017.63 . PMID   28905944. S2CID   4916503.
  58. ↑ "The Kuniya and Liru story". Parks Australia. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  59. ↑ Magowan, Fiona (2007). Melodies of Mourning: Music & Emotion in Northern Australia. Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. p. 127. ISBN   978-0-85255-992-5.
  60. ↑ Webb, T. Theodor (1933). "Aboriginal Medical Practice in East Arnhem Land". Oceania. 4 (1): 91–98. doi:10.1002/j.1834-4461.1933.tb00089.x. JSTOR   40327447.
  61. ↑ Garde, Murray. "dadbe". Bininj Kunwok Online Dictionary. Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre. Retrieved 6 Nov 2021.
  62. ↑ Taylor, Luke (1996). Seeing the Inside: Bark Painting in Western Arnhem Land. Oxford, United Kingdom: Clarendon Press. p. 59. ISBN   978-0-19-823354-1.
  63. ↑ Brady, Liam M.; Bradley, John J. (2016). "'Who do you want to kill?' Affectual and relational understandings at a sorcery rock art site in the southwest Gulf of Carpentaria, northern Australia". Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute. 22 (4): 884–901. doi: 10.1111/1467-9655.12495 .
  64. ↑ "Crocodile Dundee—00:21". www.cswap.com.

Cited texts

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.