Spotted Black Snake

(Pseudechis guttatus)

Other common names: Blue-bellied Snake

Significance to Humans: Highly Venomous
Highly venomous. Will inflate and flatten the body and neck in an effort to intimidate a perceived aggressor. Bites from this species should be treated immediately and attended to with correct first aid.

General description: Heavy build with wide head, smooth scales. Variable colour but typically dark grey to black with scattered paler scales, giving speckled effect. Belly grey to blue-grey. Midbody scales at 19 rows.

Average Length: Up to 1.5 metres.

Habitat in SE Qld: Open forest, grassland, floodplains, pasture and agricultural areas. Will shelter in deep cracks in black soil. Active day and night.

General habits: Diurnal. Actively searches for potential prey.

Diet: Frogs, small mammals, lizards and small snakes.

Local distribution: North and west of Brisbane including Mt Crosby, Greenbank, Ipswich, Lockyer and Brisbane Valleys, and Darling Downs. Records for the Mt Crosby, Ipswich and Lockyer Valley are dated and the species may have disappeared from these localities.

Around the home: Could be typically associated with ground refugia such as timber piles, sheet iron, rock walls and heavy vegetation. Frequently encountered around homes west of Toowoomba where its numbers appear greatest.

[include file=”gallery.html”]