Mulga Snakes show unusual tendency to bite people.

Everything you need to know about visiting the Australian Museum can be found in this section.There are school holiday programs and workshops on the What's On calendar.

There's a lot of information about our collections in this section.Explore what our researchers, curators and education programs have to offer.

You can explore all the different ways you can be a part of the Museum's research and come face-to-face with our staff in this section.We need you to be a part of our journey of discovery.

There is no doubt that the Mulga Snake is one of Australia's most formidable snakes.

Pseudechis australis is the only universally recognised mulga snake and a number of new species have been proposed.There are a number of cryptic species within P. australis.

Adult snakes are usually quite robust and have a broad deep head.The scales on the back, sides and tail are usually two-toned; a darker colour covers the distal portion of the scale to various degrees.The scale's base is usually white to greenish yellow and has a reticulated effect.People from the far northern arid areas have almost no dark color.The top of the head is a dark colour similar to the scales on the body.The small eyes have a pale brown iris.The belly is salmon-colored and has scattered orange blotches.

The scales in 17 rows are divided into anal and subcaudals.

An individual from near Darwin was the largest specimen measured.They average around 200 cm.Mean snout-vent lengths are larger in males than in females.

The widest distribution of any snake species in Australia is found in the Mulga Snakes.

The species can be found in a wide range of habitats, from closed tropical forest to chenopod shrubland and almost bare gibber or sandy desert.Mulga Snakes can be found in wheat fields.They shelter in animal burrows, deep soil cracks, under fallen timber and large rocks, and in deep crevices and rock crevices.

In the wild, Mulga Snakes feed on a wide variety of prey, including birds and mammals.Insturments and carrion are occasionally eaten by the species.

The Western Brown Snake Pseudonaja nuchalis is one of the snake prey that Mulga Snakes are immune to the venom of.The Mulga Snake is not immune to the toxic Cane toad, which is thought to have led to its decline in some northern parts of its range.

The species may be active both during the day and night, with diminished activity during mid-day and between midnight and dawn.Mulga Snakes are the most active during the hottest months in the northern part of their range.

In the early-mid spring, male combat has been recording.The males are trying to push over their opponent.

In southwestern Australia, it has been recorded in early spring and mid-spring.In a survey of specimen in all the major Australian museums, females with yolking follicles had been collected between mid-winter and late spring, and females carrying oviducal eggs were from late autumn and early spring.In the north, breeding may be associated with the wet and post-wet season.Between 39 to 42 days is the time between the last courting and egg-laying.The average clutch size is around 9.The snout-vent length of the female is related to the clutch size.

Depending on the temperature of the eggs, they may take between 70 and 100 days to hatch.Two hatchlings emerged from a single egg, but they were half the size of their clutch mates.

Nematodes are included in the species' known endoparasites.Older specimen carry a lot of ticks.

The Mulga Snake's temperament varies from locality to locality.The shy, quiet snake is found in southern areas of the Eyre Peninsula and west coast of South Australia.

When threatened, the Mulga Snake inflates its body and holds its head and neck in a wide curve parallel to the ground.Its head and neck will be thrown from side to side.It will try to bite if pressed further.Mulga Snakes bite and may chew as they inject their venom.The venom can be expressed in huge quantities.Its effects are mostly haemolytic, myotoxic, and mildly neurotoxic.If you are bitten, seek immediate medical attention.Black Snake Antivenom should be required because the Mulga Snake is a member of the Pseudechis family, which is also known as the King Brown Snake.

The species:australisGenus:Pseudechis Family:Elapidae Suborder:Serpentes

The Encyclopedia of Australian Animals : Reptiles was published in 1992.

The largest reptile in the world, the Australian Crocodile, is one of the animals you can discover.

The Yellow-bellied Sea Snake is the most widely ranging snake in the world, and it never has to scale the land or sea floor.

Only 25 of Australia's 200 known snake species are considered potentially deadly.There are images of Australian snakes.

Efforts to split the Western Brown Snake (Pseudonaja nuchalis) were largely defeated due to the extreme level of colour and pattern variation encountered both within and between populations.