Finding reptiles in central australia

[floater05]

Im heading down through central australia in a few weeks and i'm wondering if anyone has any tips on finding reptiles.
Id love to spot snakes and lizards from a safe distance of course. Iv heard that if you drive along the bitumen in the few hours before sunset its possible to spot the reptiles on the road increasing the body temperatures before the sun comes up.
can anyone give me some tips? If I find any snakes I will view them from the safety of the car.

Cheers!

[Jenko67]

Search YouTube for Russell Coight, he has survival tips.....

[TheTaipan]

Where do you start?

Early morning or late evening is probably the best time. If the days are stinking hot you can probably forget the middle of the day.

What to see.............you will probably need a lot of luck to see much if anything. Three friends of mine with 100 years reptile experience between them spent three weeks out there a couple of year age, result, NOTHING.

Ok, so what could you see?

Black Headed Python, Bredli Python (cranky will bite), Centralian Carpet Python (cranky will bite), Large Blotched Python (not because they a big snake but they have large blotches), Yellow faced whip snake (very thin, long thin tail and extremely fast, bit is like a bee sting, swelling and local pain.)

Monitors, probably four or five out there including the Sand Monitor and the Perentie, Australia's largest monitor.

Skinks...to many to list.

Dragons, the one you may see is the Central Bearded Dragon. Off course the Thorny Devil usually found around ants nests, the Shingle Back (has scales like a pine cone) the Centralian Blue Tongue Lizard (brown stripes around the body).which is much larger then the normal Blue Tongue.

Venomous snakes.......Desert Death Adder, Inland Taipan (the worlds most venomous snake but not aggressive), Western Brown snake, Mulga Snake ( nasty piece of work, will multiple strike and injects the largest amount of venom of any Australian snake) Eastern Brown (the second most venomous snake in the world and cranky as).

I have attached some photos. Please do not go by the colouring of the venomous snakes as the colour can vary greatly.

The Inland Taipan can have a black head or not and vary in colour..

You are best to treat ALL SNAKES AS VENOMOUS if you have no experience.

Good luck.

[TheTaipan]

More photos.

The Bandy Bandy is nocturnal. They are harmless but when you upset them they form a loop with their body.

[TheTaipan]

Photos.

[TheTaipan]

Finally found the the photo I wanted.

Most snakes can swallow food four or five times bigger than their head.

[sharkcaver]

My little one is hanging to see a thorny devil. I'll be happy with them all.

What I find amazing is this fear of snakes inbred into people. In all reality, they are not that common. To see one from a safe distance is a privilege.

Thanks for the pics Taipan.


I second the crankiness of the Eastern Brown. Had one in a pillow case under the seat for a few hours. He was quite angry when I let him go at dead mans creek. Very fast, but short strike ability. Not to be taken lightly.

[TheTaipan]

My little one is hanging to see a thorny devil. I'll be happy with them all.

What I find amazing is this fear of snakes inbred into people. In all reality, they are not that common. To see one from a safe distance is a privilege.

Thanks for the pics Taipan.

The fear of snakes normally is passed down from the parent. I have had 6ft Coppers run when i pick up a brown or Red Belly. I had a Hells Angel bike nearly his pants over an Olive Python.

One Copper actually shot a red belly that I had been called to rescue. To say i was off was an understatement.

As I have said here before mate, on average one person dies a year in Oz from snake bite, ten people die on average every year from European Bee stings, 33 push bike rider deaths, falls 1,200 deaths, 20 people die each year in Australia from horse riding related accidents.

A lot of bites are what we call 'dry bites' that is the snake doesn't release the venom, it is warning you to off and leave me alone or else. Unfortunately my three bites weren't dry bites.

THERE ARE ROUGHLY 3000 VENOMOUS SNAKE BITES EVERY YEAR IN AUSTRALIA WITH LESS THAN 1 DEATHS PER YEAR on average OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS. ON AVERAGE LESS THAN 10% OF VICTIMS ARE GIVEN ANTIVENOM.

[TheTaipan]

I second the crankiness of the Eastern Brown. Had one in a pillow case under the seat for a few hours. He was quite angry when I let him go at dead mans creek. Very fast, but short strike ability. Not to be taken lightl

Mate, we have a tiger snake snake that growls like a dog when we stir it up.

[floater05]

Wow, was not expecting that. Thanks Heaps for the information Taipan

On my travels so far Iv noticed a lack of reptiles. Iv found I am more likely to spot a snake while hiking and nearly treading on it rather than on the road from the car.

Anyone of those reptiles you have mentioned would be amazing to spot.

[TheTaipan]

Wow, was not expecting that. Thanks Heaps for the information Taipan

On my travels so far Iv noticed a lack of reptiles.

Iv found I am more likely to spot a snake while hiking and nearly treading on it rather than on the road from the car.

Anyone of those reptiles you have mentioned would be amazing to spot.

You got that right mate. The ones you see on the road are usually dead as some ignorant has run over it. More often than not deliberately.

[Quietguy]

My little one is hanging to see a thorny devil. I'll be happy with them all.

I second the crankiness of the Eastern Brown. Had one in a pillow case under the seat for a few hours. He was quite angry when I let him go at dead mans creek. Very fast, but short strike ability. Not to be taken lightly.

Not all the Eastrn Browns are cranky - I had one living in my kitchen for two years (named her Lippy) and she was very shy - hid whenever I came into the room, but of course I gave her plenty of warning (tromp tromp)

Then again I have had others that chased me, although for only a few metres

David

[TheTaipan]

Not all the Eastrn Browns are cranky - I had one living in my kitchen for two years (named her Lippy) and she was very shy - hid whenever I came into the room, but of course I gave her plenty of warning (tromp tromp)

Then again I have had others that chased me, although for only a few metres

David

You sure it was an Eastern Brown. Mate I have been handling snakes for 50 years and never have I seen a SHY Eastern Brown.

Most snakes have poor eyesight, the Eastern Brown is the exception.

[schnitzel]

a few years ago( alright quite a few) I was talking to a well respected guy from the CSIRO ( Dr Straun Sutherland) and he was telling us that in Victoria the most common area for snake bites ( Bites not Death) was actually the inner city area of prahran closely followed by collingwood ( and he also wasn't talking trouser snakes).

His reasoning was it used to be swamplands with a high snake population which is still there, and because people think it is city and snakes wont be around they dont give them the respect they need when they see them and try and pick them up or interfere with them and the snakes react. Just an interesting aside on this discussion. (p.s. this was the guy that came up with the constriction bandage for snakebites and the funnel web anti venime)

[TheTaipan]

a few years ago( alright quite a few) I was talking to a well respected guy from the CSIRO ( Dr Straun Sutherland) and he was telling us that in Victoria the most common area for snake bites ( Bites not Death) was actually the inner city area of prahran closely followed by collingwood ( and he also wasn't talking trouser snakes).

His reasoning was it used to be swamplands with a high snake population which is still there, and because people think it is city and snakes wont be around they dont give them the respect they need when they see them and try and pick them up or interfere with them and the snakes react. Just an interesting aside on this discussion. (p.s. this was the guy that came up with the constriction bandage for snakebites and the funnel web anti venime)

Yep, that's right mate. They are mainly Eastern Tigers with the odd Red Belly and Eastern Brown. Tigers and Red Bellys love swampy areas and are great swimmers where the Eastrn Brown prefers dry wooded area.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/tiger-snake-found-under-patients-bed-at-a-melbourne-hospital/story-e6frg6nf-1226550962194