Oxyuranus temporalis
| Oxyuranus temporalis | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Elapidae |
| Genus: | Oxyuranus |
| Species: | O. temporalis |
| Binomial name | |
|
Oxyuranus temporalis Doughty, Maryan, Donnellan & Hutchinson, 2007 |
|
Oxyuranus temporalis, or the Central Ranges taipan, is a species of taipan, large, fast, highly venomous Australasian snakes, that was described in 2007 by Australian researchers Paul Doughty, Brad Maryan, Stephen Donnellan and Mark Hutchinson. It was named one of the top five new species of 2007 by the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University.
Dr. Mark Hutchinson, reptile and amphibian curator at the South Australian Museum, caught the immature female taipan while it was crossing a dirt track on a sunny afternoon. The reptile was about one metre (about 40 inches) in total length (body + tail), but because taipan species are among the most venomous snakes in the world, Hutchinson did not inspect the creature on site. He bagged the snake and sent it, along with others captured from the trip, to the Western Australian Museum in Perth for closer inspection.
It was not until two weeks later that the new species was studied. At first, it was tentatively identified as a western brown snake because of the similar size and colouring. However, several weeks later, Western Australia Museum reptile collection manager Brad Maryan noticed the now preserved snake had a large, pale head similar to the coastal taipan.
The holotype, nicknamed "Scully" after the X-Files TV character, is an immature snake about a metre long, which means that scientists do not know the true adult size of the species, though some taipans can reach a total length of about three meters (about 10 feet).
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Wikipedia