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Scales
and Tails
Along with
birdwatching, John is a keen herpetologist. That's "Reptile
Enthusiast" for the uninititiated. It is a pity that our society
shuns these creatures, hunting many to the point of extinction, while we
refuse to allow the culling of a single soft, fluffy koala.
"Snakes
are just as much a part of the unique Australian environment as
koalas and platypuses, but no-one would suggest that these icons
should not be researched....We still don't really understand how
they differ from each other, nor do we fully understand their
requirements, threats or potential value to humanity."
The Roxby
Downs region supports a variety of snakes, including the "western
brown snake". There is still much to learn about the true identity
of this snake. The large, often banded 'witchita' flares its neck
cobra-style and is usually found on stony plains. The smaller green and
orange forms, which sometimes interbreed, live in sand dune country
around Roxby Downs.
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Western
Brown Snakes:
'Witchita'
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| Green |
| Orange |
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| Massive
yet placid Woma Pythons are rare highlights of trips to
the Cobbler Sandhills |
| Inhabitants
of the Moon Plain near Coober Pedy include the Gibber
Dragon . . . |
| .
. . and the Inland Taipan |
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"Even
though it was long dead I went all sweaty as I realised that I was
holding the most venomous snake in the world. Gingerly I prised open
the mouth with forceps to look at the infamous artillery. Nestled
imperceptibly within their sheaths of skin was proof of the old
adage that size doesn't count."
Australia
boasts a large percentage of the world's venomous creatures, including
the most poisonous spider (the famous Funnel-Web) and the most poisonous
snake. The
Inland
Taipan, identified in the early 1970s, has the most toxic venom ever
recorded, and one bite from this reptile contains enough venom to kill
500,000 mice. With a potency beyond any other snake in the world, you
would be forgiven for thinking that its prey included elephants and
polar bears. In fact, the Inland Taipan lives almost exclusively on rats
- the "Long-Haired" or "Plague" rat, to be precise.
So why on earth does this snake need such amazing venom? The answer was
obvious to John once he encountered one of these rats himself.
"A
rat can easily kill a snake. The sharp teeth that were gnashing away
at my hands can remove a snake's eye or even pierce its skull....a
taipan has good reason to fear one of these long-toothed hairy
monsters." "In
order to prevent their prey from escaping or inflicting serious
bites, brown snakes will often coil around a mouse, python style,
while waiting for the venom to take effect. A snake wouldn't risk
this strategy with a long-haired power-pack. Instead, inland taipans
rapidly strike and release their prey. Weaker venom could still kill
a bitten rat but it may scamper off and die out of range."
After a
long period of searching, trapping and hoping, John finally managed to
obtain a live Inland Taipan in order to examine the amazing creature up
close. A black snake with a white belly, the snake shed its skin in a
few weeks and turned a dark bronze-brown with black flecks and a
daffodil-hued belly. This dramatic colour change goes some way towards
explaining the difficulties inherent in identifying this species.
"Once
or twice when provoked the taipan reared up in a double-S strike
position, but it was easily the best-natured venomous snake that I
had ever kept. Whereas some of the others bluff and huff and carry
on it was almost as if the cool and confident taipan knew that it
was revered by everything and everyone."
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