Austalia's Inland Taipan has the most toxic venom of any land snake in the world. The maximum yield recorded for one bite is 110mg, enough to kill about 100 humans, or 250,000 mice!
The inland taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus), also commonly known as the western taipan, the small-scaled snake, or the fierce snake, is an extremely venomous snake and is endemic to semi-arid regions of central east Australia. Aboriginal Australians living in those regions named the snake Dandarabilla.
The Inland Taipan was first described by Frederick McCoy in 1879 and then by William John Macleay in 1882, but for the next 90 years, it was a mystery species to the scientific community. No more specimens were found, and virtually nothing was added to the knowledge of this species until its rediscovery in 1972.
With an toxicity (median lethal dose) of LD/50 of 0.03mg/kg, it is 10 times as venomous as the Mojave Rattlesnake, and 50 times more than the common Cobra. Fortunately, the Inland Taipan is not particularly aggressive and is rarely encountered by humans in the wild.
Based on the median lethal dose value in mice, the Inland Taipan's venom, drop for drop, is by far the most toxic of any snake – much more so than even sea snakes – and it has the most toxic venom of any reptile when tested on human heart cell culture. Unlike most snakes, the inland taipan is a specialist mammal hunter so its venom is specially adapted to kill warm-blooded species.
The Inland Taipan's venom is specially adapted to kill warm-blooded species.
It is estimated that one bite possesses enough lethality to kill at least 100 fully grown men, and, depending on the nature of the bite, it has the potential to kill someone in as little as 30 to 45 minutes if left untreated. It is an extremely fast and agile snake that can strike instantly with extreme accuracy, often striking multiple times in the same attack, and it envenoms in almost every case.
Although extremely venomous and a capable striker, in contrast to the rather aggressive coastal taipan, the Inland Taipan is usually quite a shy and reclusive snake, with a placid disposition, and prefers to escape from trouble. However, it will defend itself and strike if provoked, mishandled, or prevented from escaping. Also, because it lives in such remote locations, the inland taipan seldom comes in contact with people; therefore it is not considered the most deadly snake in the world overall, especially in terms of disposition and human deaths per year. The word "fierce" from its alternative name describes its venom, not its temperament.
Distribution
The inland taipan inhabits the black soil plains in the semi-arid regions where Queensland and South Australia borders converge.
In Queensland the snake has been observed in Channel Country region (e.g., Diamantina National Park, Durrie Station, Morney Plains Station and Astrebla Downs National Park) and in South Australia it has been observed in the Marree-Innamincka NRM District (e.g., Goyder Lagoon, Tirari Desert, Sturt Stony Desert, Coongie Lakes, Innamincka Regional Reserve and Oodnadatta). An isolated population also occurs near Coober Pedy, South Australia.
Taipan Distribution
There are two old records for localities further south-east, i.e., the junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers in northwestern Victoria (1879) and Bourke, New South Wales (1882); however the species has not been observed in either state since then.
Captive Inland Taipans
According to the International Species Information System (retrieved 2004), Inland Taipans are held in three zoo collections: the Adelaide Zoo and Sydney Taronga Zoo in Australia and Moscow Zoo in Russia. In the Moscow Zoo they are kept in the "House of Reptiles" which is not usually open for the general public.
The Inland Taipan is also on public display in Australia at the Australia Zoo, Australian Reptile Park, Billabong Sanctuary, Cairns Tropical Zoo, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and Shoalhaven Zoo.
The snake is also on display at several locations outside of Australia. In the United States, Inland Taipans are held at the Dallas Zoo, at Reptile Gardens South Dakota, at Kentucky Reptile Zoo and at Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo in Texas.
In Europe, Inland Taipans are held in Sweden at the Stockholm Skansen zoo and Goteborg Universeum. In the UK at the London Zoo.
Amateur zoo listings also report the snake in tropicarium park Jesolo Italy, in Gifttierhaus Eimsheim and TerraZoo Rheinberg Germany, in Lausanne vivarium Lausanne Switzerland, in Randers Tropical Zoo Denmark, in Plzeň Zoo Czech Republic and in Reptilienzoo Nockalm Patergassen Austria.
Inland Taipan victims
In September 2012, in the small city of Kurri Kurri, New South Wales, north of Sydney, more than 1000 kilometres away from the snake's natural environment, a teenage boy was bitten on the finger by an inland taipan. The teenager's rapid self-application of a compression bandage above the wound and the availability and administration of a polyvalent (broad-spectrum) antivenom in the local hospital saved his life. The police worked to find out how the inland taipan got to this part of Australia. The snake was most likely a stolen/illegal pet and the boy had tried to feed it.
Inland Taipan
In December 2013, reptile handler Scott Grant (age 40+), who was conducting a demonstration in front of 300 people at the annual building union's picnic in Portland, Victoria, had just finished showing the crowd an inland taipan and was trying to put it into a bag when it struck him. He got into his utility and tied a bandage around his arm. A few minutes later, however, he was lying on the ground and convulsing. He was flown in a serious condition to Essendon Airport and driven to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where his condition was stabilised and over time he recovered. Luckily only a tiny amount of venom from the inland taipan had entered his body, and the adverse reaction he felt shortly after was an allergic one, presumably due to his past snake bites.
According to Rob Bredl, a.k.a. "The Barefoot Bushman", in an isolated area of South Australia his father, Joe Bredl, was bitten while catching an inland taipan and barely survived. A more recent victim was his friend John Robinson, bitten while cleaning the inland taipan's cage at his reptile display on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. He weathered the bite without antivenom but sustained considerable muscle damage as well as heart damage.
Almost all positively identified inland taipan bite victims have been herpetologists handling the snakes for study or snake handlers, such as people who catch snakes to extract their venom, or keepers in wildlife parks. All were treated successfully with antivenom. No recorded incidents have been fatal since the advent of the monovalent (specific) antivenom therapy though it can take weeks to recover from such a severe bite.
Video: Steve Irwin handles the Inland Taipan (R.I.P. Steve)
Read the full article
The inland taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus), also commonly known as the western taipan, the small-scaled snake, or the fierce snake, is an extremely venomous snake and is endemic to semi-arid regions of central east Australia. Aboriginal Australians living in those regions named the snake Dandarabilla.
The Inland Taipan was first described by Frederick McCoy in 1879 and then by William John Macleay in 1882, but for the next 90 years, it was a mystery species to the scientific community. No more specimens were found, and virtually nothing was added to the knowledge of this species until its rediscovery in 1972.
With an toxicity (median lethal dose) of LD/50 of 0.03mg/kg, it is 10 times as venomous as the Mojave Rattlesnake, and 50 times more than the common Cobra. Fortunately, the Inland Taipan is not particularly aggressive and is rarely encountered by humans in the wild.
Based on the median lethal dose value in mice, the Inland Taipan's venom, drop for drop, is by far the most toxic of any snake – much more so than even sea snakes – and it has the most toxic venom of any reptile when tested on human heart cell culture. Unlike most snakes, the inland taipan is a specialist mammal hunter so its venom is specially adapted to kill warm-blooded species.
The Inland Taipan's venom is specially adapted to kill warm-blooded species.
It is estimated that one bite possesses enough lethality to kill at least 100 fully grown men, and, depending on the nature of the bite, it has the potential to kill someone in as little as 30 to 45 minutes if left untreated. It is an extremely fast and agile snake that can strike instantly with extreme accuracy, often striking multiple times in the same attack, and it envenoms in almost every case.
Although extremely venomous and a capable striker, in contrast to the rather aggressive coastal taipan, the Inland Taipan is usually quite a shy and reclusive snake, with a placid disposition, and prefers to escape from trouble. However, it will defend itself and strike if provoked, mishandled, or prevented from escaping. Also, because it lives in such remote locations, the inland taipan seldom comes in contact with people; therefore it is not considered the most deadly snake in the world overall, especially in terms of disposition and human deaths per year. The word "fierce" from its alternative name describes its venom, not its temperament.
Distribution
The inland taipan inhabits the black soil plains in the semi-arid regions where Queensland and South Australia borders converge.
In Queensland the snake has been observed in Channel Country region (e.g., Diamantina National Park, Durrie Station, Morney Plains Station and Astrebla Downs National Park) and in South Australia it has been observed in the Marree-Innamincka NRM District (e.g., Goyder Lagoon, Tirari Desert, Sturt Stony Desert, Coongie Lakes, Innamincka Regional Reserve and Oodnadatta). An isolated population also occurs near Coober Pedy, South Australia.
Taipan Distribution
There are two old records for localities further south-east, i.e., the junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers in northwestern Victoria (1879) and Bourke, New South Wales (1882); however the species has not been observed in either state since then.
Captive Inland Taipans
According to the International Species Information System (retrieved 2004), Inland Taipans are held in three zoo collections: the Adelaide Zoo and Sydney Taronga Zoo in Australia and Moscow Zoo in Russia. In the Moscow Zoo they are kept in the "House of Reptiles" which is not usually open for the general public.
The Inland Taipan is also on public display in Australia at the Australia Zoo, Australian Reptile Park, Billabong Sanctuary, Cairns Tropical Zoo, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and Shoalhaven Zoo.
The snake is also on display at several locations outside of Australia. In the United States, Inland Taipans are held at the Dallas Zoo, at Reptile Gardens South Dakota, at Kentucky Reptile Zoo and at Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo in Texas.
In Europe, Inland Taipans are held in Sweden at the Stockholm Skansen zoo and Goteborg Universeum. In the UK at the London Zoo.
Amateur zoo listings also report the snake in tropicarium park Jesolo Italy, in Gifttierhaus Eimsheim and TerraZoo Rheinberg Germany, in Lausanne vivarium Lausanne Switzerland, in Randers Tropical Zoo Denmark, in Plzeň Zoo Czech Republic and in Reptilienzoo Nockalm Patergassen Austria.
Inland Taipan victims
In September 2012, in the small city of Kurri Kurri, New South Wales, north of Sydney, more than 1000 kilometres away from the snake's natural environment, a teenage boy was bitten on the finger by an inland taipan. The teenager's rapid self-application of a compression bandage above the wound and the availability and administration of a polyvalent (broad-spectrum) antivenom in the local hospital saved his life. The police worked to find out how the inland taipan got to this part of Australia. The snake was most likely a stolen/illegal pet and the boy had tried to feed it.
Inland Taipan
In December 2013, reptile handler Scott Grant (age 40+), who was conducting a demonstration in front of 300 people at the annual building union's picnic in Portland, Victoria, had just finished showing the crowd an inland taipan and was trying to put it into a bag when it struck him. He got into his utility and tied a bandage around his arm. A few minutes later, however, he was lying on the ground and convulsing. He was flown in a serious condition to Essendon Airport and driven to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where his condition was stabilised and over time he recovered. Luckily only a tiny amount of venom from the inland taipan had entered his body, and the adverse reaction he felt shortly after was an allergic one, presumably due to his past snake bites.
According to Rob Bredl, a.k.a. "The Barefoot Bushman", in an isolated area of South Australia his father, Joe Bredl, was bitten while catching an inland taipan and barely survived. A more recent victim was his friend John Robinson, bitten while cleaning the inland taipan's cage at his reptile display on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. He weathered the bite without antivenom but sustained considerable muscle damage as well as heart damage.
Almost all positively identified inland taipan bite victims have been herpetologists handling the snakes for study or snake handlers, such as people who catch snakes to extract their venom, or keepers in wildlife parks. All were treated successfully with antivenom. No recorded incidents have been fatal since the advent of the monovalent (specific) antivenom therapy though it can take weeks to recover from such a severe bite.
Video: Steve Irwin handles the Inland Taipan (R.I.P. Steve)
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inland_taipan
Read the full article
