Species Oxyuranus scutellatus (Peters, 1867)
Taipan
Generic Combinations
- Oxyuranus scutellatus (Peters, 1867).
Distribution
States
New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia
Extra Distribution Information
Subspecies Oxyuranus scutellatus canni restricted to New Guinea
IBRA
NSW, NT, Qld, WA: Arnhem Coast (ARC), Arnhem Plateau (ARP), Brigalow Belt North (BBN), Central Arnhem (CA), Central Kimberley (CK), Central Mackay Coast (CMC), Cape York Peninsula (CYP), Daly Basin (DAB), Darwin Coastal (DAC), Dampierland (DL), Northern Kimberley (NK), NSW North Coast (NNC), Ord Victoria Plain (OVP), Pine Creek (PCK), South Eastern Queensland (SEQ), Tiwi Cobourg (TIW), Victoria Bonaparte (VB), Wet Tropics (WT)
Ecological Descriptors
Closed forest, diurnal, low open woodland, open forest, oviparous, predator, tall forest, terrestrial, woodland.
Extra Ecological Information
General carnivore, occasionally nocturnal.
Notes
Non-Australian synonyms:
Oxyuranus scutellatus canni Slater, K.R. (1956). On the New Guinea taipan. Mem. Natl Mus. Vic. 20: 1-5 [2].
Type data: holotype NMV D8614.
Type locality: Napa Napa, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
Taxonomic decision for synonymy: Cogger, H.G. (1983). in Cogger, H.G., Cameron, E.E. & Cogger, H.M. Amphibia and Reptiles. In Walton, D.W. (ed.) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Vol. 1. Netley, South Australia : Griffin Press Ltd vi 313 pp. [230].
General References
Cogger, H.G., in Cogger, H.G., Cameron, E.E. & Cogger, H.M. 1983. Amphibia and Reptilia. 313 pp. in Walton, D.W. (ed.). Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service Vol. 1 vi + 313 pp. [229] (subspecies not identified in Cogger et al. (1983: 229), in which Cogger listed synonyms)
Covacevich, J., McDowell, S.B., Tanner, C. & Mengden, G.A. 1981. The relationship of the taipan, Oxyuranus scutellatus, and the small-scaled snake, Oxyuranus microlepidotus (Serpentes: Elapidae). pp. 160-168 in Banks, C.B. & Martin, A.A. (eds). Proceedings of the Melbourne Herpetological Symposium, 1980. Melbourne : Zoological Board of Victoria pp. 44-54. (taxonomy)
Fohlman, J. 1979. Comparison of two highly toxic Australian snake venoms: the taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus) and the fierce snake (Parademansia microlepidotus). Toxicon 17: 170-172 (venom)
Gow, G.F. 1980. History of the taipan Oxyuranus scutellatus with two new distribution records. Northern Territory Naturalist 1: 15-19 (natural history)
Mackay, R. 1952. The Taipan. Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales 1950–51: 24-25 (natural history)
Slater, K.R. 1956. On the New Guinea taipan. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria, Melbourne 20: 1-5 (natural history)
Thomson, D.F. 1933. Notes on the Australian snakes of the genera Pseudechis and Oxyuranus. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1933: 855-860 (natural history)
Common Name References
CAVS 2006. Census of Australian Vertebrate Species. Australian Biological Resources Study. (Taipan)
History of changes
| Published | As part of group | Action Date | Action Type | Compiler(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04-Feb-2023 | ELAPIDAE Boie, 1827 | 24-Aug-2023 | MODIFIED | |
| 07-Feb-2024 | 19-Mar-2013 | MODIFIED | ||
| 08-Mar-2011 | 08-Mar-2011 | MODIFIED | ||
| 12-Feb-2010 | (import) |