pseudaletis clymenus , the common fantasy , is a butterfly in the lycaenidae family .

it is found in western and eastern nigeria , cameroon , the central african republic and the democratic republic of the congo .

the habitat consists of forests .

pseudaletis clymenus

according to pausanias , endymion deposed clymenus , son of cardys , at olympia . describing the
early history
of the eleans , pausanias reports that :
harpalyce was the daughter of king clymenus of arcadia , son of either schoeneus ( first version ) or of teleus of argos ( second version ) . clymenus was overcome with passion for his daughter . there are several versions of what happened next , of which all embody an incestuous father and a vengeful feast in which a child is killed and served up .
as long as you do not mind being disappointed here they are . the first picture is an overall photo of the whole drawer . also included in this drawer are some south african specimens from the genus tylopedia ( column 1 ) and phasis in column 2 and 3 . the last three columns are various iolaus species . the second photo enlarges the pseudaletis specimens . they were originally determined using libert’s “revision du genre pseudaletis . lambillionea” 2007 . i have since modified it after bouyer , “lambillionea , cxiii , 2” , 2013 . and also bouyer , “ent africana 19 ( 1 ) ” , 2014 . there are four specimens , two with a label beside them ( tb ? ) and two at an angle in the third column that i still need to examine and determine more accurately . any help happily accepted .
in the second version harpalyce was the daughter of clymenus son of teleus of argos , and of epicasta , and has two brothers : idas and therager . clymenus was overcome with passion for his daughter and secretly embarked on an affair with her that lasted for some time . finally , alastor , descendant of neleus , came to claim harpalyce as his wife , she having been betrothed to him since she was young . when the couple were halfway to their home , clymenus abducted her back and lived with her openly as his wife . harpalyce , being upset by father ' s treatment of her , killed her younger brother and served him up to his father at a banquet . she then prayed to the gods and was transformed into a bird called the
chalkis
. clymenus took his own life .
phrixa was a hilltop town in the ancient land of pisa . the town was already ruined in pausanias ' days ( 2nd century ad ) . it had a temple of cydonian athena . it was said that the temple was founded by clymenus from kydonia in crete , a descendant of heracles of ida .
of the characters in greek mythology called phaethon ( ; ,
phaéthōn
, ) , the best known was the son of the oceanid clymene and the solar deity helios . alternatively , less common genealogies make him a son of clymenus by oceanid merope , of helios and rhodos ( thus a full brother of the heliadae ) or of helios and prote .
other epithets include : aethyia under which she was worshiped in megara . the word
aethyia
( ) signifies a
diver
, and figuratively , a
ship
, so the name must reference athena teaching the art of shipbuilding or navigation . in a temple at phrixa in elis , which was reportedly built by clymenus , she was known as cydonia .
in the first version clymenus , son of schoeneus , raped his daughter and she became pregnant . when the son was born she served him up as a meal at a banquet to his father , who killed her over that . in an alternative version of this tale , she was instead transformed into a bird , the
chalkis
( see second version below ) .
harpalyke ( ; greek :
αρπαλύκη
) , also known as ' , is a retrograde irregular satellite of jupiter . it was discovered by a team of astronomers from the university of hawaii led by scott s . sheppard in 2000 , and given the temporary designation ' . in august 2003 , the moon was named after harpalyke , the incestuous daughter of clymenus , who in some accounts was also a lover of zeus ( jupiter ) .
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confused by a class within a class or an order within an order ? please see our brief essay .
to cite this page : myers , p . , r . espinosa , c . s . parr , t . jones , g . s . hammond , and t . a . dewey . 2018 . the animal diversity web ( online ) . accessed at https : / / animaldiversity . org .
disclaimer : the animal diversity web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students . adw doesn ' t cover all species in the world , nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe . though we edit our accounts for accuracy , we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts . while adw staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable , we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control .
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a diverse genus of tropical african , ant - associated butterflies , many species of which are rare and have been described only recently . sexual dimorphism is so extreme that in many instances males and females have not been associated ( larsen 2005 ) .
ackery , p . r . , smith , c . r . & vane - wright , r . i . ( ed . ) 1995 carcasson ' s african butterflies . canberra : csiro .
larsen , t . b . 2005 butterflies of west africa . stenstrup , denmark : apollo books .
correspondence regarding this page should be directed to andrew v . z . brower at
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warning : the ncbi web site requires javascript to function . more . . .
format summary genbank genbank ( full ) fasta asn . 1 xml insdseq xml tinyseq xml feature table accession list gi list gff3
opens the highlight feature bar and highlights feature annotations from the features table of the record . the highlight feature bar can be used to navigate to and highlight other features and provides links to display the highlighted region separately . links in the features table will also highlight the corresponding region of the sequence . more . . .
finds sub - sequences or patterns in the sequence and highlights the matching regions . the tool works with standard single letter nucleotide or protein codes including ambiguities and can match prosite patterns in protein sequences . more . . .
finds sub - sequence or patterns in the sequence and highlights the matching region . the tool works with standard single letter nucleotide or protein codes including ambiguities and can match prosite patterns in protein sequences . more . . .
is an african genus of lycaenidae , comprised of 25 seldom encountered forest species . the are tied to
ant trees
where the larvae feed , and probably pupate , within the
ant nests . adults , it would seem , prefer to stay perched up in the canopy along the edges of forest clearings , and have been observed to be active as the sun is setting . a number have been taken at moth - lights during the night , suggesting that they are perhaps , in part , nocturnal .
both their flight and facies contribute to excellent mimicry of certain day - flying moths . i ' ve been fortunate enough to collect a single female of
( michel libert ' s 2007 revision of the genus records only 2 other females from d . r . congo ) , and , until
pointed out what it was , i had it stored among my moth specimens . it really had me fooled !
at the bottom - left is one of 4 known specimens of the species ( 1 male , 3 female ) , with each specimen having been found singly in separate localities ( actually 1 each from guinea , ivory coast , ghana , and cameroon ) .
are known to have been collected from c . a . r . and cameroon ( only 4 males ) .
this species was named by libert in honour of the team at abri . at the time of publishing the revision only 13 females were known ( in this box we see 17 ) . the male has yet to be discovered .
this male holotype is the only known specimen of p . cornesi , and was collected in nigeria :
, from togo , is one of only 2 known ( the other , from nigeria , is housed in the natural history museum , in london ) . the female is unknown :
( including the female allotype . . . i don ' t have a picture of the male holotype which must have been in another box ) . below we have a close - up of a few males & females from r . c . a . ( central african republic ) .
, from guinea , which is known from 2 males & a female , all collected in the month of september .
despite the former being white and the latter orange . . . a feature which seems fairly significant to the divisions within the genus .
, from ghana , is known from 5 males all caught in light - traps . the holotype is at m . r . a . c . in tervuren , belgium . ( i believe the quite beat - up specimen top - left of the first image is one of these 5 males )
( described by neave in 1910 , known from 2 females - se d . r . congo & zambia ) and
( from 1 male , described by druce 1913 - cameroon ) are not represented in the abri collection ( outside of those images , but can be found at the n . h . m . ( london ) .
species , as of the year 2007 9 were known from 5 or fewer specimens . if you ' re into collected rare butterflies , in my opinion , this group ought to be at the top of your list !
an amazing series of photographs of a genus that one rarely gets a chance to see , even as plates in an article , revision or book . thank you for showing them . seeing a series , as opposed to a book plate of a singleton , makes it much easier to appreciate and understand the taxonomy involved . it puts my small number of specimens to shame .
i ' d love to see pictures of what you have , if you ' d be willing to share .
s ' il n ' y pas de solution c ' est qu ' il n ' y a pas de problème ! akuna matata . . . .
from where is the antimachus female from ? it looks like unusual . . .
this is one of the things i love about icf - we get to see all these fantastic species that no - one normally shows us . adam .
this forum reminds me how little i know about insects on a daily basis , it really is a gold mine .
it is no possible to work on picture of course but your zebra include at least 2 different species first zebra ( tb ? ) and third are probably relied to the 2 other ( angled ) in the second columns and seems the male of the zebra ( ht female fom gabon ) . the two others may be what libert described taeniata ( but photos are not enough ) the large marginal black margin of the antimachus female is unusual but this species is very variable ( it contains probably a group of species that i didn ' t yet had opportunity to study seriously ) . at least the antimachus from congo seems a different species of that from cameroon and gabon and dardanella may be a good species .
it ' s remarkable to me how much some of these species ( especially abriana ) resemble certain neotropical riodinids ! j . hyatt
sad to say , another no . i just took a morning to grab pictures of random boxes from within the collection . i ' ll be slowly sharing these pictures here over the coming months . perhaps next time around i can take more targeted photos . i was tempted to take more photos of the
but they were sitting above ian richardson ' s work space , so they were inconvenient to get to .


acanthophis is a genus of elapid snakes .

commonly called death adders , they are native to australia , new guinea and nearby islands , and are among the most venomous snakes in the world .

the name of the genus derives from the ancient greek acanthos/ἄκανθος " spine " and ophis/ὄφις " snake " , referring to the spine on the death adder 's tail .

seven species are listed by itis , though it remains unclear how many species this genus includes , with figures ranging from 4 to 15 species being quoted .

acanthophis

acanthophis hawkei wells & wellington 1985 : 43 acanthophis cummingi hoser 1998 acanthophis cummingi — wells 2002 acanthophis hawkei — wells 2002 acanthophis lancasteri — wells 2002 acanthophis hawkei — fry et al . 2002 acanthophis hawkei — wüster et al . 2004 acanthophis hawkei — wallach et al . 2014 : 4
acanthophis praelongus ramsay 1877 : 72 acanthophis praelongus — cogger 2000 : 634 acanthophis praelongus — schmidt & kunz 2005 : 75 acanthophis praelongus — wallach et al . 2014 : 4
acanthophis wellsei hoser 1998 acanthophis wellsi — aplin & donnellan 1999 ( emendation ) acanthophis wellsi — fry et al . 2002 aggressiserpens wellsi — wells 2002 acanthophis wellsei donnellani hoser 2002 acanthophis wellsi — wilson & swan 2010 acanthophis wellsi — wallach et al . 2014 : 4 acanthophis wellsei — cogger 2014 : 859
acanthophis pyrrhus boulenger 1898 : 75 acanthophis antarcticus pyrrhus acanthophis pyrrhus — cogger 2000 : 634 aggressiserpens pyrrhus — wells 2002 acanthophis pyrrhus armstrongi wells & wellington 1985 aggressiserpens armstrongi — wells 2002 acanthophis pyrrhus — wilson & swan 2010 acanthophis pyrrhus — wallach et al . 2014 : 4
boa antarctica shaw & nodder 1802 : pl . 535 acanthophis cerastinus daudin 1803 : 289 acanthophis brownii leach 1814 : 12 boa ambigua leach 1814 : 12 ( nomen nudum ) ophryas acanthophis merrem 1820 : 147 vipera acanthophis schlegel 1837 : 605 vipera sorda salvado 1851 : 48 acanthophis cerastinus — duméril & bibron 1854 : 1389 acanthophis cerastinus — günther 1863 : 398 boa aculeata boulenger 1896 : 356 ( nomen nudum ) acanthophis antarcticus — werner 1899 acanthophis antarcticus — de rooij 1917 : 272 acanthophis antarcticus — cogger 1983 : 217 acanthophis antarcticus — cogger 2000 : 632 acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni hoser 2002 ( see comment ) acanthophis antarcticus — wallach et al . 2014 : 3 acanthophis antarcticus schistos wells & wellington 1985 acanthophis schistos wells & wellington 1985 : 44 acanthophis schistos — wells 2002
clinical differences in envenomation characteristics among the races of death adder : common ( acanthophis antarcticus antarcticus ) , eastern ( acanthophis antarcticus laevis ) , desert ( acanthophis pyrrhus ) have not been reported .
click here for a more recent paper naming further species and subspecies of acanthophis .
he’s published over 140 papers and five books . his principal research interest is acanthophis .
the kimberley death adder ( acanthophis cryptamydros ) . image credit : ryan j . ellis .
death adders acanthophis : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies .
the death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) : the effect of its bite and its treatment .
costs of venom production in the common death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) . - pubmed - ncbi
for numerous other papers that deal dominantly or substantially with death adders ( acanthophis spp . ) .
acanthophis cryptamydros maddodk , ellis , doughty , a . smith and wüster , 2015 – kimberley death adder
photos of acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . in life are found in hoser ( 1989 ) .
a new species of death adder ( acanthophis : serpentes : elapidae ) from north - western australia .
a new species of death adder ( acanthophis : serpentes : elapidae ) from north - western australia .
ecology of the australian death adder acanthophis antarcticus ( elapidae ) : evidence for convergence with the viperidae .
death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies .
acanthophis woolfi sp . nov . to view a photo of a specimen of this species - click here .
reptilia , australian monsoonal tropics , mtdna , ndna , systematics , taxonomy , acanthophis cryptamydros sp . nov .
type locality : from sydney ( as port jackson ) , n . s . w . [ acanthophis brownii ]
biology : little known , but presumed to be similar to that of other acanthophis . worrell ( 1972 ) records this species as being most active at the end of the wet season which roughly parallels the activities of acanthophis in northern australia by the author’s own investigations and what was said by o’shea ( 1996 ) in his summary of new guinea acanthophis . lindgren ( 1975 ) states acanthophis in png range up to nearly 2000 metres . it is assumed that these high altitude acanthophis are probably a . laevis , at least in the highland areas west of goroka and into irian jaya .
the dorsal colouration of the type specimen is typical for acanthophis in that dorsally it has alternating darker and lighter crossbands .
the viper - like acanthophis cryptamydros has a diamond - shaped head and stout body . ryan ellis / western australian museum
the original description of the subspecies acanthophis pyrrhus armstrongi by wells and wellington from 1985 ( as a full species ) .
biology : little known , but presumed to be similar to that of other acanthophis . worrell ( 1972 ) records this species as being most active at the end of the wet season which roughly parallels the activities of acanthophis in northern australia by the author ' s own investigations and what was said by o ' shea ( 1996 ) in his summary of new guinea acanthophis . lindgren ( 1975 ) states acanthophis in png range up to nearly 2000 metres . it is assumed that these high altitude acanthophis are probably a . laevis , at least in the highland areas west of goroka and into irian jaya .
until a formal naming of this taxon , it should be referred to as either praelongus , or as acanthophis sp .
a new species of death adder ( acanthophis : serpentes : elapidae ) from north - western australia . - pubmed - ncbi
the northern death adder ( acanthophis praelongus ) . this image shows flattening behaviour to enlarge the body and evade predators . ©cnzdenek
death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an updated overview , including descriptions of 3 new island species and 2 new australian subspecies .
keys that differentiate different species of acanthophis have not been presented here . all keys seen by this author for the genus acanthophis appear to break down with substantial regularity due to variability within each species , even though a number of species divisions are widely acknowledged .
biology : not known . assumed to be similar for other acanthophis . likewise for captivity , although to date nothing is recorded .
in 2001 this author saw a specimen in a jar labelled as
acanthophis hawkei
, which was in fact this species .
the complete amino acid sequence of a post - synaptic neurotoxin isolated from the venom of the australian death adder snake acanthophis antarcticus .
death adders ( genus : acanthophis ) : an updated overview , including descriptions of 3 new island species and 2 new australian subspecies .
upon viewing the acanthophis at the australian museum spirit house , the animal r147655 was immediately retrieved as being like no other acanthophis in the collection . that it’s collection locality data matched that of specimen number 22812 at the museum of comparative zoology ( the type ) came as no surprise .
in more recent times a number of herpetologists , including curators at the queensland museum have confused this species with the better - known acanthophis hawkei .
notwithstanding this , potential keepers of acanthophis species should confirm their legal positions and options with the relevant legal authorities before embarking on such a course .
death adders are harvested and bred in captivity for the pet trade . no figures are available for the number of acanthophis rugosus in commercial trade .
what made you want to look up acanthophis ? please tell us where you read or heard it ( including the quote , if possible ) .
the systematics of this genus requires urgent revision . several undescribed species are likely to be present , particularly in new guinea . type species : acanthophis cerastinus daudin 1803 is the type species of the genus acanthophis daudin 1803 . subspecies : acanthophis antarcticus laevis ( macleay 1878 ) and acanthophis antarcticus rugosus loveridge 1948 have been elevated to species status . synonymy mostly after cogger 1983 . acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswelingtoni hoser 2002 maybe synonymous to a . antarcticus ( w . wüster , pers . comm . , 15 dec 2010 ) . kaiser et al . 2013 considered the subpecies acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswelingtoni hoser 2002 and the genus aggressiserpens wells 2002 invalid and rejected them . note that the date of shaw & nodder’s publication ( 1794 ) cited by boulenger ( 1896 ) and subsequent authors is in error fide sherborn ( 1895 ) [ cited in cogger 1983 ] . the correct publication year is 1802 . venomous !
kim , h . s . and tamiya , n . 1981 . isolation , properties and amino acid sequence of a long chain neurotoxin , acanthophis antarcticus b , from the venom of and australian snake ( the common death adder acanthophis antarcticus ) , biochemical journal , 193 : 899 - 906 .
upon viewing the acanthophis at the australian museum spirit house , the animal r147655 was immediately retrieved as being like no other acanthophis in the collection . that it ' s collection locality data matched that of specimen number 22812 at the museum of comparative zoology ( the type ) came as no surprise .
photographic comparison of a common death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) with a terciopelo viper ( bothrops asper ) , illustrating morphological similarities ( e . g . thin tail , triangular head , thick and short body ) between acanthophis sp . and viperidae snakes ( photos : cnzdenek ; dinoanimals . com )
named the kimberley death adder ( acanthophis cryptamydros ) , the snake is roughly 24 inches ( 60 cm ) long and has a diamond - shaped head .
wells , richard w . 2002 . taxonomy the genus acanthophis ( reptilia : elapidae ) in australia . australian biodiversity record ( 5 ) : 1 - 16
distribution : as mentioned already acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . appears to be distributed on the eyre peninsula of south australia and nearby places to the east and west in south australia . the status of acanthophis populations near eucla near the sa / wa border and those on nearby offshore islands is not entirely certain .
17 / desert death adder ( a . pyrrhus ) , male , from the tits , wa . in flattened defensive posture which is typical of all acanthophis .
hay , m . 1972 . notes on the growth and breeding of acanthophis antarcticus’ , the australian herpetological society journal , 4 ( 4 ) : 14 - 15 .
hoser , raymond 1998 . colour change in death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) and other reptiles . monitor 10 ( 1 ) : 4 ; 31 - get paper here
it was suggested that perhaps a . groenveldi and a . macgregori should be treated as subspecific to a . laevis , however due to the physical distance of seram and tanimbar from new guinea and the time it is assumed that populations of acanthophis from these places have had their populations genetically isolated , it was decided to treat the three groups of acanthophis as being of separate species unless and until compelling evidence to the contrary arises . all species of acanthophis as identified here can be separated via dna analysis .
there may also be an undescribed subspecies in inland south - eastern queensland ( see under the discussion for the newly described subspecies acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . ) .
trade : hoser ( 1991 , 1993 , 1996 ) discusses the legal and illegal trade of australian reptiles , including acanthophis , as well as conservation of these snakes . persons within australia contemplating trapping , studying or keeping these snakes , or any other acanthophis and complying with the relevant state laws are referred to hoser ( 1993 , 1996 ) .
fyfe , g . and munday , b . 1988 . captive breeding of the desert death adder ( acanthophis pyrrhus ) , herpetofauna , 18 ( 2 ) : 21 .
mirtschin , p . j . 1982 . further notes on breeding death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) in captivity . herpetofauna , 13 ( 2 ) : 14 - 17 .
hay , m . 1972 . notes on the growth and breeding of acanthophis antarcticus ' , the australian herpetological society journal , 4 ( 4 ) : 14 - 15 .
storr , g . m . ( 1981 ) the genus acanthophis ( serpentes : elapidae ) in western australia . records of the western australian museum , 9 , 203–210 .
hoser , r . t . 1987 . notes on the breeding of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) ’ , herptile , 12 ( 2 ) : 56 - 61 . *
hoser , r . t . 1987 . notes on the breeding of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) ' , herptile , 12 ( 2 ) : 56 - 61 . *
shine , r . ( 1980 ) ecology of the australian death adder , acanthophis antarcticus ( elapidae ) : evidence for convergence with the viperidae . herpetologica , 36 , 281–289 .
schulz , k . - d . & w . grossmann 1990 . das portrait : acanthophis pyrrhus boulenger . sauria 12 ( 2 ) : 1 - 2 - get paper here
although acanthophis will readily eat frogs ( see shine , ( 1980 ) for a detailed analysis of what wild death adders will eat ) , these are not recommended due to the heavy parasite burden carried by these animals . although i never had parasite problems with my acanthophis , taronga zoo in sydney reported ascarid ( blood parasite ) problems with some of it ' s desert death adders . on ( extremely ) rare occasions that acanthophis have had to be force or
assist
- fed , this has not posed any problems .
boulenger , g . a . 1898 . description of a new death adder ( acanthophis ) from central australia . annals magazine of natural history , 7 ( 2 ) : 75 .
hoser , r . t . 1982 , frequency of sloughing in captive morelia , liasis and acanthophis ( serpentes ) , herptile , 7 ( 3 ) : 20 - 26 . *
snakes - death adders - genus acanthophis - the definitive paper - by raymond hoser , published in the reptilian magazine ( uk ) in 1995 - . . . the full text .
barnett , brian f . & graeme f . gow 1994 . the berkly tableland death adder acanthophis antarcticus . litteratura serpentium 14 ( 3 ) : 80 - 85 - get paper here
the genus name , acanthophis , derives from the ancient greek acanthos meaning
spine
and ophis witch means
snake
, and refers to the spine found in its tail .
campbell , c . h . : the death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) : the effect of its bite and its treatment . med j aust . 2 : 922 , 1966 .
so i was going to make a long video of my acanthophis feeding but interesting things happened so i ended up making a short but interesting video . in the first part , you can see my acanthophis hawkei using her tail as a lure . this is called caudal luring and is a very common hunting method for several snake species . acanthophis genus in general uses caudal luring very often for hunting . the second part of the video is the unusual part . i was trying to remove my yearling female acanthophis hawkei and she went into feeding mode immediately . when she saw movement , she attacked and bit the little cactus plant , which is planted in the cage . you don ' t see a vegetarian death adder everyday so enjoy : )
as of 1998 , there have been no records of sympatry in the wild between different species of acanthophis , a point noted by mcdowall ( 1984 ) . although there is no dispute in the fact that all acanthophis are closely related , it is uncertain if given similarities between different species reflect immediate relationships or are instead due to convergence in evolution to cope with localised conditions .
hoser , r . t . 1981 . note on an unsuitable food item taken by a death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) ( shaw ) herpetofauna 13 ( 1 ) : 31 . *
hoser , r . t . 1983 . mating behavior in australian death adders , genus acanthophis ( serpentes elapidae ) , herptile ( 8 ) 1 , 1983 : 25 - 33 . *
valentic , r . 1998 . notes on rearing australian death adders genus acanthophis , monitor - journal of the victorian herpetological society , 9 ( 2 ) : 32 , 42 - 47 .
hoser , r . t . 1983 . mating behavior in australian death adders , genus acanthophis ( serpentes elapidae ) , herptile ( 8 ) 1 , 1983 : 25 - 33 . *
hoser , r . t . 1985 . on melanistic tendencies in death adders , acanthophis antarcticus ( shaw ) . litteratura serpentium 5 ( 4 ) : 157 - 159 - get paper here
hoser , raymond t . 1990 . literature : notes on the breeding of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) . litteratura serpentium 10 ( 6 ) : 271 - 272 - get paper here
shine , r . 1980 . ecology of the australian death adder acanthophis antarcticus ( elapidae ) : evidence for convergence with the viperidae . herpetologica 36 : 281 - 289 - get paper here
ramsay , e . p . ( 1877 ) description of a supposed new species of acanthophis from north australia . proceedings of the linnean society of new south wales , 2 , 72–74 .
ramsay , e . p . 1877 . description of a supposed new species of acanthophis from north australia , proceedings of the linnean society of new south wales , 2 : 72 - 74 .
shine , r . 1980 , ecology of the australian death adder acanthophis antarcticus ( elapidae ) : evidence for convergence with the viperidae . herpetologica , 36 ( 4 ) : 281 - 289 .
storr , g . m . 1981 . the genus acanthophis ( serpentes : elapidae ) in western australia , records of the western australian museum , 9 ( 2 ) : 203 - 210 .
dobiey , maik ; frank weinsheimer , guido westhoff 2008 . cannibalism in two species of death adders ( acanthophis rugosus and a . antarcticus ) . ophidia 2 ( 2 ) - get paper here
johnston , g . 1996 . genetic and seasonal variation in body colour of the australian death adder , acanthophis antarcticus ( squamata : elapidae ) . journal of zoology 239 ( 1 ) : 187
longmore ( 1986 ) records no acanthophis ( of any species ) in a distinct area of the gulf of carpentaria running several hundred kilometers south from the southern most part of the gulf , although acanthophis are known from the islands of the gulf , including groote ( lancasteri ) and mornington ( species not known ) . this apparent gap separates a . lancasteri from a . praelongus in north queensland .
the acanthophis names as used by hoser ( 1998 ) have become adopted by some , but not all wildlife authorities and within this ambit , some names are recognised by some and others are not .
gow , g . f . 1981 . notes on the desert death adder ( acanthophis pyrrhus ) boulenger 1898 , with the first reproductive record . northern territory naturalist , 4 : 21 - 22 .
hoser , r . t . 1985a . genetic composition of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus : serpentes : elapidae ) in the west head area , herptile , 10 ( 3 ) : 96 . *
hoser , r . t . 1985b . on melanistic tendencies in death adders acanthophis antarcticus ( shaw ) . litteratura serpentium ( english edition ) , 5 ( 4 ) : 157 - 159 . *
storr , g . m . 1981 . the genus acanthophis ( serpentes : elapidae ) in western australia . rec . west . austr . mus . 9 : 203 - 210 - get paper here
boulenger , g . a . ( 1898 ) description of a new death adder ( acanthophis ) from central australia . annals and magazine of natural history , series 7 , 2 , 75 . urltoken
johnston , g . ( 1996 ) genetic and seasonal variation in body colour of the australian death adder , acanthophis antarcticus ( squamata : elapidae ) . journal of zoology , 239 , 187–196 . urltoken
an extended description of the pilbara death adder , acanthophis wellsi hoser ( serpentes elapidae ) , with notes on the desert death adder , a . pyrrhus boulenger , and identification of a possible hybrid zone
hay , m . ( 1972 ) , ' notes on the growth and breeding of acanthophis antarcticus ' , the australian herpetological society journal , 4 ( 4 ) , pp . 14 - 15 .
hoser , r . t . ( 1987 ) , ' notes on the breeding of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) ' , herptile , 12 ( 2 ) , pp . 56 - 61 .
death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an updated overview , including descriptions of three new species and two subspecies . a 2002 paper published in crocodilian - journal of the victorian association of amateur herpetologists .
acanthophis from near camooweal , queensland , tend to have heavy white markings on the lower supralabials , ( upper lips ) but unlike in a . hawkei from anthony ' s lagoon , nt , they do not quite form a distinct
white - lipped
appearance . some reptile keepers have classified these snakes as
barkly adders
( = a . hawkei ) and it is probably with these snakes that the camooweal acanthophis have closest affinity , noting that camooweal is situated roughly on the edge of the black soil part of the barkly tableland . this author regards camooweal acanthophis as a . hawkei .
size : despite the variations within the literature , it is generally thought that a . antarcticus , a . hawkei and a . woolfi are the three largest species of acanthophis - at least within australia .
in acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . the lighter triangles on the front upper labials are generally either less distinct than in a . antarcticus schistos or even absent , instead being replaced by dark pigment .
diagnosis : known at this stage only from the island of seram to the west of new guinea . this is also diagnostic for this species . a . groenveldi is the only acanthophis found on seram .
a pilot genetic analysis of a small number of individuals suggests that all of the species of acanthophis are closely related . acanthophis wellsi appears to be closest genetically to a . pyrrhus , but this may not denote a special cladistic affinity . a cladistic analysis of morphological characters identifies a . wellsi as a relatively plesiomorphic species , perhaps ' closest in overall body form to the common ancestor of all acanthaphis species .
fyfe , g . and munday , b . ( 1988 ) , ' captive breeding of the desert death adder ( acanthophis pyrrhus ) ' , herpetofauna , 18 ( 2 ) , p . 21 .
mirtschin , p . j . ( 1982 ) , ' further notes on breeding death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus ) in captivity . ' herpetofauna , 13 ( 2 ) , pp . 14 - 17 .
the west australian specimens of a . antarcticus schistos are separated from acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . by dna properties , venom properties and colouration , particularly in terms of usual markings around the labial scales .
hoser , r . t . 1995 . australia’s death adders , genus acanthophis , the reptilian 3 ( 4 ) pp . 7 - 21 and cover , 3 ( 5 ) : 27 - 34 . *
hoser , r . 1998 . death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies . monitor 9 ( 2 ) : 20 - 41 - get paper here
boulenger , g . a . 1898 . description of a new death adder ( acanthophis ) from central australia . ann . mag . nat . hist . ( 7 ) 2 : 75 - get paper here
shine ( 1981 ) found that in the wild , male acanthophis mature at about 24 months , while females mature at about 42 months . this was based on museum dissections of various species ( all lumped together ) . local populations may vary slightly on this basic pattern . captive acanthophis tend to mature much earlier , the exact rate dependent on feeding and temperature of the young snake . it is common to have both sexes mature within 24 months in a captive environment . as a snake , acanthophis lend themselves to being kept and bred in large numbers . hopefully in the future they will be more commonly seen in captivity .
hoser , r . t . ( 1982 ) , ' frequency of sloughing in captive morelia , liasis and acanthophis ( serpentes ) ' , herptile , 7 ( 3 ) , pp . 20 - 26 .
death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies an 11 , 000 word paper in monitor - journal of the victorian herpetological society published in april 1998 .
the newly - discovered species belongs to acanthophis ( australian death adders ) , a genus of highly venomous snakes found in australia and new guinea , and also on several indonesian islands to the west of new guinea .
in 1985 , wells and wellington assigned all western australian a . pyrrhus to a new species , namely
a . armstrongi
. that they intended placing all a . pyrrhus from western australia into the new species is confirmed by their statement ‘storr ( 1981 : 207 - 208 ) provided a description of a species from north - western australia that he regarded as acanthophis pyrrhus . however , we consider that this is really an undescribed species , herein named acanthophis armstrongi , and that the species acanthophis pyrrhus is confined to central australia . acanthophis armstrongi is believed confined to the pilbara and kimberley regions of western australia and can be identified by referring to the illustrations in storr ( 1981 : fig 3 ) and gow ( 1983 : plate 15 , ( upper ) , specimen from port hedland , western australia vide gow , pers . comm . ) . ’
ramsay , e . p . 1877 . description of a supposed new species of acanthophis from north australia . proceedings of the linnean society of new south wales , 2 : 72 - 74 . - get paper here
hoser , r . t . ( 1983 ) , ' mating behaviour in australian death adders , genus acanthophis ( serpentes elapidae ) ' , herptile ( 8 ) 1 , 1983 , pp . 25 - 33 .
in 1985 , wells and wellington assigned all western australian a . pyrrhus to a new species , namely
a . armstrongi
. that they intended placing all a . pyrrhus from western australia into the new species is confirmed by their statement ' storr ( 1981 : 207 - 208 ) provided a description of a species from north - western australia that he regarded as acanthophis pyrrhus . however , we consider that this is really an undescribed species , herein named acanthophis armstrongi , and that the species acanthophis pyrrhus is confined to central australia . acanthophis armstrongi is believed confined to the pilbara and kimberley regions of western australia and can be identified by referring to the illustrations in storr ( 1981 : fig 3 ) and gow ( 1983 : plate 15 , ( upper ) , specimen from port hedland , western australia vide gow , pers . comm . ) . '
common death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) * family : elapidae , * genus : acanthophis , * species : a . antarcticus , * phylum : chordata , * class : reptilia , * order : squamata , * suborder : serpentes , * type : reptile , * diet : carnivore , * avarege life span in the wild : averages 15 - - 20 years , * size : reaching a length of 70 - 100 centimeters , * weight : no data , * * acanthophis antarcticus , is a species of death adder native to australia . it is one of the most venomous land snakes in australia and the world . more info : urltoken
in 1997 - 8 when doing a taxonomic review of acanthophis , this author obtained a copy of the wells and wellington paper and noted that they had in fact described
a . armstrongi
as a pilbara death adder . however what had apparently been overlooked was that the snake described by wells and wellington had not been the undescribed form of acanthophis , but rather the local variant of what is commonly known as a . pyrrhus .
hoser , r . t . 1995 . australia ' s death adders , genus acanthophis , the reptilian 3 ( 4 ) pp . 7 - 21 and cover , 3 ( 5 ) : 27 - 34 . *
an extended description of the pilbara death adder , acanthophis wellsi hoser ( serpentes elapidae ) , with notes on the desert death adder , a . pyrrhus boulenger , and identification of a possible hybrid zone | western australian museum
hoser , r . t . ( 1981 ) , ' note on an unsuitable food item taken by a death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) ( shaw ) ' , herpetofauna 13 ( 1 ) , p . 31 .
hoser , r . t . ( 1985b ) ' on melanistic tendancies in death adders acanthophis antarcticus ( shaw ) . ' litteratura serpentium ( english edition ) , 5 ( 4 ) , pp . 157 - 159 .
shine , r . ( 1980 ) , ecology of the australian death adder acanthophis antarcticus ( elapidae ) : evidence for convergence with the viperidae . ' herpetologica , 36 ( 4 ) , pp . 281 - 289 .
death adders ( genus acanthophis ) are found in most parts of australia , new guinea and adjacent islands . they are unusual among the elapids in that they have evolved to become viperine in appearance and habit . all species are characterised by a broad somewhat flattened , triangular head , short stout body and a thin rat - like body ending in a curved spine . the spine and the presence of subocular scales separates acanthophis from all other australasian elapids .
barnett , b . f . and gow , g . f . 1992 . the barkly tableland death adder , acanthophis antarcticus , monitor , bulletin of the victorian herpetological society , 4 ( 1 ) : 13 - 23 .
gow , g . f . ( 1981 ) ' notes on the desert death adder ( acanthophis pyrrhus ) boulenger 1898 , with the first reproductive record . ' northern territory naturalist , 4 , pp . 21 - 22 .
hoser , r . t . ( 1985a ) , ' genetic composition of death adders ( acanthophis antarcticus : serpentes : elapidae ) in the west head area ' , herptile , 10 ( 3 ) , p . 96 .
my own acanthophis didn ' t seem to object to being photographed while mating . on one occasion ( 8th may 1981 ) , two mating death adders ( a . antarcticus ) were free handled by thieves ( while connected ) , had cigarettes ashed on them and yet they still continued to mate without attempting to break up ! although males of all species of acanthophis will mate other species of acanthophis , they do tend to prefer mating their own species and will do so if offered a choice ( in a captive situation ) . extremely highly sexed males will attempt to mount other males if no females are present in the same cage . this even applies with acanthophis of different species . it is not rare for a male acanthophis to run down condition fairly sharply when mating over a period extending up to two months . overfed males tend not to be as sexually active as leaner ( not necessarily thin ) males . this situation also occurs for other types of reptile . in spite of a warning to readers to watch the condition of males when mating , i have never had a male run itself down beyond the point of recovery .
furthermore this subspecies has ( on average ) less neurotoxic venom than all other variants of a . antarcticus known , including a . antarcticus antarcticus from eastern australia and the south - west west australian population , herein referred to as a . antarcticus schistos ( see the taxonomic note near the end of this paper ) . acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . is separated from all other acanthophis ( all species and subspecies ) by dna and venom properties and distribution .
johnston , g . r . 1987 . reproduction and growth in captive death adders acanthophis antarcticus ( squamata : elapidae ) . transactions of the royal society of south australia , 11 ( 1 - 2 ) : 123 - 125 .
stettler , p . h . 1985 . australian death adders - remarks concerning the post - embryonic development of acanthophis antarcticus ( shaw , 1794 ) , litteratura serpentium , english edition , 5 ( 5 ) : 170 - 190 .
storr , g . m . ( 1981 ) , ' the genus acanthophis ( serpentes : elapidae ) in western australia . ' , records of the western australian museum , 9 ( 2 ) , pp . 203 - 210 .
diagnosis : similar in most respects to acanthophis antarcticus , the type subspecies being defined here as coming from sydney new south wales , from which they differ in their slightly smaller average size and generally different ground colouration . notwithstanding the high degree of variability in a . antarcticus in general , dorsally the grey specimens of acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . are never as silvery , steely - grey as the grey morph of a . antarcticus typified by sydney specimens . likewise the red specimens are rarely if ever the same brick - red colour , those of acanthophis antarcticus cliffrosswellingtoni subsp . nov . tending slightly more towards an orangeish , rather than a salmon or reddish pink as in a . antarcticus .
synonymy after cogger 1983 , who also listed acanthophis antarcticus rugosus loveridge 1948 as a synonym of a . praelongus . closely related to a . antarcticus according to wüster ( 2004 ) . see also entry of a . laevis . venomous !
stettler , p . - h . 1985 . australian death adders - remarks concerning the post - embryonic developement of acanthophis antarcticus antarcticus ( shaw , 1794 ) . litteratura serpentium 5 ( 5 ) : 170 - 180 - get paper here
hoser , r . t . ( 1998 ) death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies . monitor , journal of the victorian herpetological society , 9 , 20–30 , 33–41 .
hoser , r . t . 1997a the mating behavior and breeding of australian death adders , genus : acanthophis ( serpentes : elapidae ) , monitor - journal of the victorian herpetological society 8 ( 3 ) : 135 - 144 and cover .
mackay , w . j . 1889 . the osteology and myology of the death adder ( acanthophis antarctica ) . proc . linn . soc . n . s . w . ( 2 ) 4 : 896 - 986 - get paper here
common death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) . note the scale colours matches either the top or underneath of leaves remarkably well . the caudal lure is adjacent the head , probably to ensure the protection of this precious , modified body part . ©cnzdenek
the type specimen of a . laevis has not been inspected by this author , however an inspection of acanthophis from the same locality and nearby areas conform with macleay’s description and this author has assigned all those snakes to a . laevis . the snake in question is substantially different to the a . praelongus described by ramsay , which is presumably based on a north queensland acanthophis , from near somerset , ( cape york ) queensland . acanthophis laevis has smooth scales , while a . praelongus tends to have slightly keeled scales . head patterning of both species is also usually radically different . for example compare the photo of a . praelongus from north queensland ( plate 380 , hoser , 1989 ) with the a . laevis shown here .
captivity : breeding data for captive specimens is provided by barnett and gow ( 1992 ) . barnett quoted snout - vent lengths of offspring in a litter ranging from 193 - 207 mm , which is far in excess that recorded for any other species of acanthophis , including a . antarcticus , lending weight to claims that this is the largest form of acanthophis . the species has been bred in captivity in recent years by brian barnett in victoria ( again ) and roland burrell in south australia .
hoser , r . t . 1998 . death adders ( genus acanthophis ) : an overview , including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies . monitor - journal of the victorian herpetological society 9 ( 2 ) : 20 - 41 . *
the type specimen of a . laevis has not been inspected by this author , however an inspection of acanthophis from the same locality and nearby areas conform with macleay ' s description and this author has assigned all those snakes to a . laevis . the snake in question is substantially different to the a . praelongus described by ramsay , which is presumably based on a north queensland acanthophis , from near somerset , ( cape york ) queensland . acanthophis laevis has smooth scales , while a . praelongus tends to have slightly keeled scales . head patterning of both species is also usually radically different . for example compare the photo of a . praelongus from north queensland ( plate 380 , hoser , 1989 ) with the a . laevis shown here .
valentic , r . 1997 . notes on the capture and captive husbandry of a female death adder acanthophis antarcticus fromthe upper eyre peninsula , sth . aust . monitor : journal of the victorian herpetological society . 9 ( 1 ) : 13 - 17
shine , r . , spencer , c . l . & keogh , j . s . ( 2014 ) morphology , reproduction and diet in australian and papuan death adders ( acanthophis , elapidae ) . plos one , 9 , e94216 . urltoken
acanthophis usually slough in one piece , and repeated failure by a captive snake to do so may indicate a health problem that needs to be addressed . i have never observed acanthophis soaking prior to sloughing or heard of captive specimens having difficulty in doing so . this is except for some minor problems experienced by mirtschin , who had snakes which had piecemeal sloughs . he thought this was due to excessive dryness in his cages which tended to lack cover . when feeding snakes in group cages i often had snakes bite and chew one another , with no adverse effects on one another ( hoser 1985c ) . that appeared to indicate immunity to venom by these snakes . stettler ( 1985 ) and van woerkom ( 1985 ) documented a case involving apparent non - immunity to venom in acanthophis from unknown locality whereby two apparently healthy snakes died from bites from a fellow acanthophis that was part of the same litter . although the cause of death may have been something other than venom , this whole area needs further investigation .
diagnosis : for the colouration in life , see this magazine depicting a specimen from just south of darwin , nt . it should be noted that in line with other acanthophis , a . cummingi is extremely variable in colour , even within a single locality .
sheumack , d . d . , howden , m . e . h . and spence , i . 1979 . isolation and partial characterisation of a lethal neurotoxin from the venom of the australian death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ) , toxicon 17 : 609 .
keys that differentiate different species of acanthophis have not been presented here . all keys seen by this author for the genus acathophis appear to break down with susbstantial regularity due to veriablity within each species , even though a number of species divisons are widely acknowledged .
barnett , b . f . and gow , g . f . ( 1992 ) , ' the barkly tableland death adder , acanthophis antarcticus ' , monitor , bulletin of the victorian herpetological society , 4 ( 1 ) , pp . 13 - 23 .
stettler , p . h . ( 1985 ) , australian death adders - remarks concerning the post - embryonic development of acanthophis antarcticus ( shaw , 1794 ) ' , litteratura serpentium , english edition , 5 ( 5 ) , pp . 170 - 190 .
i am unaware of records of captive breeding of acanthophis outside of australia , but see no difficulties in such taking place . most acanthophis ( all species ) breed only every second year . this is genetically pre - determined and contrary to popular belief is not influenced by food intake or general condition of the female prior to a given breeding season . occasional individuals ( females ) are able to breed every year , and will do so in captivity . following successful mating in autumn or spring , all acanthophis give birth in summer and early autumn ( late january to early may ) . for a . antarcticus the number of young born are known to range up to 33 . based on dissections of museum specimens , shine found the average litter size for the species of 8 .
johnston , g . r . ( 1987 ) , ' reproduction and growth in captive death adders acanthophis antarcticus ( squamata : elapidae ) . ' transactions of the royal society of south australia , 11 ( 1 - 2 ) , pp . 123 - 125 .
lindgren ( 1975 ) , plate 88 depicts a head photo of a snake this author believes is probably a . laevis in life . however it’s facial markings are not like the a . laevis at the australian museum . it is believed that the non - black dark pigment tends to fade faster than the black pigment in preserved animals ; this trait is believed to be common to all acanthophis . the point is noted here as a lack of black pigment in a . laevis , may make specimens fade more than other acanthophis species .
paratype : a specimen held in the museum of zoology , bogor from tanimbar , lat : 7°30’ long : 131°30’ , specimen number mzb 2056 . the dorsal colouration of the paratype specimen is also typical for acanthophis in that dorsally it has alternating darker and lighter crossbands .
herein restricted to the cape york region of queensland and adjacent areas . refer to above descriptions of a . laevis and a . lancasteri . populations of acanthophis from western australia and the northern territory formerly referred to as this species are now classified as a . lancasteri . populations of acanthophis from new guinea and other islands north of australia that may have been referred to as this species are no longer regarded as such ( see for a . barnetti , a . crotalusei , a . laevis , above and a . rugosus below ) .
carpenter , c . c . , murphy , j . b . and carpenter , g . c . 1978 . caudal luring in the death adder ( acanthophis antarcticus ( reptilia , serpentes , elapidae ) ) , journal of herpetology , 12 : 574 - 577 .
unless otherwise stated , i shall here treat new guinea acanthophis and those from adjacent islands as a variant of a . praelongus . a trait common to many a . praelongus , in particular new guinea specimens is a raised suracilliary scale above the eye . this feature is often particularly pronounced in immature specimens . it is occasionally seen to a limited degree in young a . antarcticus . a similar trait ( often even more exaggerated ) is seen in some of the true vipers . no acanthophis species are rare or endangered . all are widely distributed and common in their preferred habitats . their preferred habitats vary , but are essentially undisturbed bushland with some form of ground cover . the cover doesn ' t have to be leaf litter , but can be rocks , native grasses or almost anything else . however any disturbed habitat or grazed areas tend not to have acanthophis . acanthophis are most vulnerable to any form of human disturbance and therefore only occur in virgin bush . the construction of a road through such a habitat ( with no other development ) is not counted as disturbance .
due to the steady removal of bushland throughout australia , all acanthophis are in decline . for a number of reasons , the death adder ( a . antarcticus ) , often called
the southern variety
never is found in the same numbers as the other two species . it is for this reason that the name
common
death adder really is a misnomer . all acanthophis are mainly nocturnal and are highly secretive snakes . they spend most of their time half buried in ground litter waiting in an ambush position for food , or simply sheltering . unlike most other australian snakes , they tend not to flee when approached , relying instead on their cryptic colouration and camoflague to avoid detection . that this works is indicated by the fact that most bites from acanthophis seem to occur when they are trodden on .
diagnosis : this acanthophis is separated from all others in the genus by distribution , being the only species to occur on the island of tanimbar . it is separated from all other acanthophis species except laevis and groenveldi by it’s ventral scalation , which is usually under 118 . ventral scale counts for two specimens of a . macgregori came to 113 . the relationship of a . macgregori to those acanthophis from adjacent islands is uncertain . specimens of the species observed by this author appear to be different from a . laevis and a . groenveldi in that the supra - ocular is not quite as raised . however this may not be a consistent diagnostic trait . this species appears to be quite unlike a . rugosa and a . lancasteri found to the mainland areas north and south of tanimbar in adjacent new guinea and australia .
simon t . maddock et al . 2015 . a new species of death adder ( acanthophis : serpentes : elapidae ) from north - western australia . zootaxa 4007 ( 3 ) : 301 – 326 ; doi : 10 . 11646 / zootaxa . 4007 . 3 . 1
this jagged
white - lipped
appearance is relatively unusual in a . antarcticus and has never been seen to the same degree as is typical for a . hawkei . excluding a . antarcticus , adult a . hawkei could not be confused with any other australian acanthophis .
lindgren ( 1975 ) , plate 88 depicts a head photo of a snake this author believes is probably a . laevis in life . however it ' s facial markings are not like the a . laevis at the australian museum . it is believed that the non - black dark pigment tends to fade faster than the black pigment in preserved animals ; this trait is believed to be common to all acanthophis . the point is noted here as a lack of black pigment in a . laevis , may make specimens fade more than other acanthophis species .
a new species of viper - like snake discovered in the kimberley region of northwestern australia is highly venomous and expertly camouflaged . called acanthophis cryptamydros , the kimberley death adder is a sit - and - wait predator – ambushing frogs , lizards , and small mammals passing by .
this author has been in regular contact with the western australian museum staff for many years and received correspondences from them implying that they may undertake and publish a second review of the genus acanthophis ( e . g . smith 1997 ) , the first review being that of storr ( 1981 ) . it is noted that a time frame of over 6 years has elapsed since the undescribed pilbara acanthophis was originally found by scientists and staff at the western australian museum . it is noted that to date they have chosen not to describe it as a new species .
synonymy : not listed by cogger 2000 . the name was emended to wellsi as the species was described in honor of richard wells . acanthophis wellsi donnellani hoser 2002 may be a synonym of a . wellsi ( wüster , pers . comm . 15 dec 2010 ) . venomous !
maddock , simon t . ; ryan j . ellis , paul doughty , lawrence a . smith & wolfgang wüster 2015 . a new species of death adder ( acanthophis : serpentes : elapidae ) from north - western australia zootaxa 4007 ( 3 ) : 301–326 - get paper here
let me have a little guess at what is going on . while i do not have the wa musem publications at hand , i will hazard a guess that these august publications use one single one of the numerous names you have been throwing around in recent years : acanthophis wellsi
acanthophis have highly varied diets , including frogs , birds , small mammals and lizards . captive a . antarcticus and a . pyrrhus have been known to take live goldfish placed writhing in their cages . diet obviously also varies with locality . west head adders ( a . antarcticus ) , have been known to disgorge frogs ( crinia signifera ) , while such prey would be absent from areas where other acanthophis may occur . one 86 . 5 cm female death adder ( a . antarcticus ) was caught in the wild , having just fed on a large 80 cm water dragon lizard ( physignathus lesueurii ) . the snake died shortly after due to the lizard ' s spines penetrating the digestive tract ( see hoser 1981 ) . acanthophis attempt to capture prey by wriggling their tails ( caudal luring ) , ( carpenter , murphy and carpenter , 1978 ) . when the prey animal ( such as a native mouse ) goes for the tail , the snake strikes at the animal with great accuracy . even if the animal struggles aggressively , acanthophis will tend to hang on until the animal is totally subdued ( dead ) .
copulation usually appears to be terminated by the female . this is usually done when she crawls off , dragging the male along behind her by his still joined hemipenis . mating behaviour is most likely during times of outside temperature and air - pressure changes . in a captive situation , it is best to plan matings around these conditions . although acanthophis that are housed together will mate readily , separation of sexes strongly increases the eagerness of males to mate . not all matings will result in pregnancies . acanthophis will mate at any time of year , although most activity seems to be concentrated around autumn and spring , which is also when most successful matings also occur . although it is thought that at least some acanthophis have some sperm storage capabilities , no investigation of this has yet been done . in hay ' s ( hay , 1972 ) case , his female hadn ' t mated for 12 months before giving birth . gow and barnett ( 1992 ) quote a
gestation
period for barkly adders of , 142 , 147 and 161 days in three cases . the figures quoted by gow and barnett tend towards the shorter end of the spectrum for successful matings in acanthophis ( those
gestations
at the short end of the spectrum are also the most commonly quoted ) . for my own breedings , the successful matings ( that resulted in young being born ) were deduced to have taken place some 6 - 9 months earlier , ( there were either no other matings or possibilities in all cases ) . assuming that young death adders develop in a similar manner in all cases , sperm storage is indicated in acanthophis by the experiences of hay and myself . further research into sperm storage capabilities of acanthophis is required .
specimens of acanthophis from islands in the torres strait region north of cape york in the australian museum have been seen by this author . while being tentatively assigned to this species ( a . praelongus ) by this author , do have intermediate characteristics between this species and a . laevis , the most notable being reduced ventral scale counts . noting that aplin and donnellan ( 1999 ) identified a zone of hybridization between a . wellsei and a . pyrrhus in western australia , it is likely that such may in fact occur between another two acanthophis species in the torres strait area .


psychomastatix deserticola is a species of grasshopper in the family eumastacidae .

it is endemic to the united states .

it is known commonly as the desert monkey grasshopper .

psychomastatix deserticola

iucn red list of threatened species . version 2012 . 1 ( 18650 ) psychomastatix deserticola
iucn red list of threatened species . version 2012 . 2 ( 18650 ) psychomastatix deserticola
wikipedia article copyright notice : this article is licensed under the gnu free documentation license . it uses material from the wikipedia article
psychomastatix deserticola
.
facts summary : the desert monkey grasshopper ( psychomastatix deserticola ) is a species of concern belonging in the species group
insects
and found in the following area ( s ) : united states .
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glenn , c . r . 2006 .
earth ' s endangered creatures - desert monkey grasshopper facts
( online ) - licensed article from wikipedia : the free encyclopedia . accessed
sea turtles are graceful saltwater reptiles , well adapted to life at sea . unlike turtles on land , sea turtles cannot retract their legs and head . but with streamlined bodies and flipper - like limbs , they are graceful swimmers able to navigate across the oceans of the world .
here , we look at the seven species that can be found today , all of which are said to have been around since the time of the dinosaurs .
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this page was last edited on 19 december 2006 , at 08 : 26 .
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