Australia is once again upholding its notable reptile reputation as researchers discover a new species of snake, the Desert Whip Snake.
Found widespread across the continent, ranging from the Eastern Goldfields to southwest Queensland, the latest addition to Australia’s class Reptilia resides mostly through the arid inland areas.
The discovery follows Adelaide geneticist James Nankivell and researcher Mark Hutchinson joining forces with Perth biodiversity environmentalists Brad Maryan and Brian Bush, to work together in examining hundreds of individual whip snakes.
Appearing bluish-grey in colour, the formal name for the Desert Whip Snake is Demansia Cyanochasma, modified from the Greek words kyanos meaning blue and khasma meaning space or expanse.
Although distinct in its look, the new reptile has historically been confused with two other whip snakes. These are the Yellow-faced Whip Snake from eastern Australia and the Reticulated Whip Snake endemic to the western part of WA.
Due to its venomous nature, the snake is able to rapidly subdue its wriggling prey. However, the species doesn’t pose a threat to people, as a severe bite will typically only cause pain and swelling to the bitten area.
The new whip snake grows to a maximum length of 89cm, with the females reproducing annually between mid to late spring and early summer.
With one species also occurring in Papua New Guinea, the group referred to as whip snakes now include a total of 15 sub-species, making it Australia’s largest genus of front-fanged venomous land snakes.