Rough-scaled Snake

Lamington National Park, Qld.

It was being chased by a small band of Yellow-throated & white-browed scrubwrens.

This is a potentially deadly snake (one recorded human death), and medical aide should be sought immediately if biten.

View all photos taken: Sunday, 24th January 2010, This photo: 3:04pm

Previous Photo: The whole crew

Comments

  • SkattyKat said:
    lol Dave, when I read your blurb yesterday about the snake - I wondered where the photo of the snake was ......
    cool clear shot - he's thicker back where the grass blades are - digesting something maybe ?
  • David de Groot said:
    Didn't seem to be Kath, he sort of tapered at each end and was fat-ish in the middle, but couldn't see any obvious lump to indicate he had a recent bellyful.
    What was slightly alarming were the number of people who thought it was a python.
  • golmuso said:
    Looks alot like our tiger snakes down here! And look at that head...i don't think you could mistake that for being a python:S haha
    Great find and shot dave:)
  • David de Groot said:
    Well noone that knows anything about snakes would, but there were a lot of tourists on the track, and it does have similar colours to a carpet python (and that's where the resemblance ends).
  • James Lagden said:
    Nice. I didn't see any snakes down there on Australia day. Did see some Blue Mountain Crayfish though.
  • golmuso said:
    true true! Normally people expect the opposite with snakes and try to kill them or run. He seems in a world of his own anyhows which is good to see.
    either way picking this guy up is a no no haha
  • David de Groot said:
    Ah well I didn't see any crayfish, but then I wasn't near any water either. ;-)
    Oh definitely not to be toyed with.
  • Out_and_About said:
    When I'm in the bush and the birds seem to go nuts, I always stop and check out what it is they are going on about as generally it's a snake or lizard that is causing some drama and if it's a snake, I want to know where it is!
  • David de Groot said:
    Definitely. They were definitely an helpful pointer in this case. :)
  • Ross_M said:
    Maybe this is what I thought was a Tiger Snake
  • teejaybee said:
    I was waiting for this one after the bird shot :P
    I've seen photos where the head even looks slightly pythonish, coupled with the pattern variation, and adrenaline pumping, could lead to some nasty surprises.
    This is the exact reason why, even if i'm 110% sure a snake I have a need to pick up is non-venomous, I still handle it as if it was.
    P.S. juvenile eastern browns can have similar colours to this, as well as a completely jet black head.
  • David de Groot said:
    Could be - not sure what a tiger snakes native habitat is like, or if they're known in the Lamington NP.
  • David de Groot said:
    I've been told elsewhere that this is actually a Tiger Snake. I'm not 100% convinced of that yet, so if you have a learned opinion, I'm all ears.
  • teejaybee said:
    If you do a search through Stewart Mcdonald's photostream and compare head shapes and general features then i'd say this is a roughie, but someone who really knows the two would have to confirm...
  • David de Groot said:
    Yeah I saw a couple of Rough-scaled on his stream, at least one was similar. The person who has queried the ID is going to check on another forum, but is fairly adamant it's a Tiger. Guess we'll see eventually.
  • Stewart Macdonald said:
    It's definitely a tiger. Nice find! Lamington is one of the few places in Qld in which you can see this species.
  • David de Groot said:
    Well there you go then - much appreciated for the ID Stewart. Can't say I've ever seen a Tiger snake before this.
  • James Lagden said:
    Tiger snake, that's a nice upgrade Dave!
    This looks very similar to one I saw at North Pine dam a while back, but I had completely rejected the idea it could be a Tiger snake due to the location.
  • David de Groot said:
    Indeed - still a first for me, as I'd not seen one before. Apparently they're not widely spread in Qld.
  • Nobbys Nuts2009 said:
    Nice shot but I still hope to never see one if I can avoid it.
    Cheers
    Tony
  • David de Groot said:
    Well better to see it than to accidentally step on it ;-)