In 1963 Eric Worrell considered Parademansia microlepidotus and Oxyuranus scutellatus (coastal taipan, named simply "taipan" in those days) to be the same species. In 1956, relying only on published descriptions and notes, James Roy Kinghorn regarded ferox as a synonym for microlepidotus and proposed the genus Parademansia. In 1896 George Albert Boulenger classified both as belonging to the same genus, Pseudechis (black snakes), referring them as Pseudechis microlepidotus and Pseudechis ferox. No more specimens were collected until 1972.
In 1882 a third specimen was found near Bourke, New South Wales, and William John Macleay described the same snake under the name Diemenia ferox (thinking it was a different species ). Two specimens of the fierce snake were discovered in the junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers in northwestern Victoria and described by Frederick McCoy, who called the species Diemenia microlepidota, or small- scaled brown snake.
The inland taipan first came to the attention of Western science in 1879. To the aboriginal people from the place now called Goyder Lagoon in north-east South Australia, the inland taipan was called Dandarabilla. The inland taipan would have been known to Aboriginal Australians 40,000–60,000 years ago and is well known to them today. Alignments of the mitochondrial ND4 genes from these species indicate an evolutionary divergence from the common ancestor around 9-10 million years ago. The Australian taipans the coastal taipan ( Oxyuranus scutellatus) and the inland taipan ( Oxyuranus microlepidotus) shared a common ancestor. The word "fierce" from its alternative name describes its venom, not its temperament. Because it lives in such remote locations, the inland taipan seldom comes in contact with people therefore it is not considered the deadliest snake in the world overall, especially in terms of disposition and human deaths per year. However, it will defend itself and strike if provoked, mishandled, or prevented from escaping. Īlthough the most venomous and a capable striker, in contrast to the coastal taipan which many experts cite as an extremely dangerous snake due to its behavior when it encounters humans, the inland taipan is usually a quite shy and reclusive snake, with a placid disposition, and prefers to escape from trouble. 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 envenomates in almost every case. It is estimated that one bite possesses enough lethality to kill at least 100 fully grown humans. The inland taipan is a specialist hunter of mammals, so its venom is specially adapted to kill warm-blooded species. īased on the median lethal dose value in mice, the venom of the inland taipan is by far the most toxic of any snake – much more so than even that of sea snakes – and it has the most toxic venom of any reptile when tested on human heart cell culture. It 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 to the scientific community no further specimens were found, and virtually nothing was added to the knowledge of this species until its rediscovery in 1972. Aboriginal Australians living in those regions named the snake dandarabilla. The species is endemic to semi-arid regions of central east Australia. The inland taipan ( Oxyuranus microlepidotus), also commonly known as the western taipan, the small-scaled snake or the fierce snake, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the family Elapidae. Pseudechis microlepidotus / Pseudechis ferox.The current, documented range of the species is more limited.
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