Death Adders, Acanthophis spp., are Australian Snakes
closely resembling the Old World Vipers, though they are Elapid Snakes more closely related to Cobras
and Sea Snakes. The taxonomy of the group is poorly understood, with the genus
currently divided into several widely distributed and highly variable species,
a classification system thought unlikely to be accurate by Herpetologists
(scientists that study Amphibians and Reptiles) specializing in the group.
In a paper published in the
journal Zootaxa on 28 August 2015, Simon Maddock of the Department of Life Sciences at The Natural History Museum, the Research Department of Genetics, Evolution & Environment at University College London and the Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory at Bangor University, Ryan Ellis,
Paul Doughty and Lawrence Smith of the Department of Terrestrial Zoology at the
Western Australian Museum and Wolfgang Wüster, also of the Molecular
Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory at Bangor University describe a new
species of Death Adder from the Kimberly Region of Western Australia and the
Northern Territory.
The new species is named Acanthophis cryptamydros, meaning hidden
and indistinct. The species is described from a population previously assigned
to the Northern Death Adder, Acanthophis praelongus,
but shown by a genetic survey to be a distinct species more closely related to
the Desert Death Adder Acanthophis pyrrhus.
Acanthophis cryptamydros in
life. Ryan Ellis in Maddock et al.
(2015).
Acanthophis Pyrrhus is an orange brown Snake with darker bands
averaging 503 mm in length for males and 549 mm in length for females. It was
found living on the Kimberly region of Western Australia and the Northern
Territory, between Wotjulum to the west and Kununurra in the east, as well as
some offshore islands including Koolan, Bigge, Boongaree, Wulalam, and an
unnamed island in Talbot Bay. It was found dwelling on or close to sandstone
outcrops in open savannah woodland, and appears to eat a range of small
vertebrates including Lizards, Frogs, Birds and Mammals. Other species of Death
Adder have been shown to be susceptible to toxins produced by the introduced
Cane Toad, Rhinella marina, and this species is presumed to also be at risk as
the Toads continue to move west across the Kimberly region.
Habitat of Acanthophis
cryptamydros at Theda Station in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia.
Ryan Ellis in Maddock et al. (2015).
See also…
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Many small tropical and subtropical islands are thought to have impoverished faunas, due to extinctions of local animals caused by human activity, notably habitat modification and the introduction of exotic...
Blunt-headed Vine Snakes (Imantodes) are medium sized (roughly meter length) Colubrid Snakes found from Mexico to Argentina. They are immediately recognizable due to their long thin bodies...
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