Common or Eastern Brown Snake
Pseudonaja textilis

Length:

to 2m.

Identification:

adults, back any shade of brown, sometimes black or dark grey and occasionally banded; belly cream with pink or orange flecks or blotches. Young invariably have head with red or orange band separating it from matt black band on neck. Narrow, black body bands often present.

Scale Counts:

midbody scale rows 17; ventrals 185-235; anal divided; subcaudals divided 45-75. Rostral scale (on tip of snout) not conspicuous or 'strap-like' when viewed from above.

Habitat:

all habitats except rainforest; well-adapted to farmed, grazed and semi-urban lands.

Distribution:

Most of Qld, NSW and Vic, southern SA, isolated populations in the NT; also southern Papua New Guinea.

Status:

common

Habits:

active by day, although young are often encountered at night.

Breeding:

egg-layer (10-35); average snout-vent length of hatchlings 19cm.

Main Prey:

frogs, reptiles, birds and mammals.

Venom:

strongly neurotoxic and haemotoxic; the second most toxic land snake venom known.

Notes:

potentially dangerous; apply first aid and seek urgent medical attention for all suspected bites; responsible for many human deaths. pugnacious; rears up in distinctive "S" shape and strikes repeatedly, if provoked.

Similar Species:

Coastal Taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus), which may have similar colour patterns, but can be distinguished by scalation, presence of prominent `brow' above eye and longer head; Mulga Snake (Pseudechis australis), which is more heavily built, and lacks orange spots/blotches on belly; some colour forms of the Western Brown Snake (Pseudonaja nuchalis) from which it is separated by the size and shape of the rostral scale.