southern relative. It is not entirely clear what prompted
this significant increase in potency but David Williams
speculates that the taipan encountered either venom-
resistant predator or prey, and hence the increased
production of taipoxin. He also reasons that it was
probably a predator responsible for this push, since prey
items don’t die from neurotoxicity. Historically, the death
toll from taipan bites amongst the human population in
PNG was very high, and no wonder.
to north Queensland to collect insects, frogs, snakes,
spiders and anything else that moved for the Australian
Butterfly Farm in Wilberforce, NSW. Needless to say, it
was a dream job. I had plenty of field experience with
Tiger Snakes, copperheads, browns and Red-bellied
Black Snakes, but I was little bit nervous about stepping
up to collect taipans. My first catch was easy, as the five-
foot taipan slid into my hoop bag without any drama, so I
thought, ‘If this is all there is to it, cool.’ The next one, a
few days later, taught me a valuable lesson - relax when
‘I soon learned that once you have hold of
a taipan by its tail, never drop it - no
matter what!’
Catching and handling wild taipans is VERY different to
dealing with captive specimens. Depending on whom
you’re talking to and how much experience they have,
the scale goes from extremely dangerous to quite easy.
Taipans can be frisky and fly over your shoulder when
tailed, or they can be as easy as handling a Red-bellied
Black Snake. One thing I always had on my mind when
herping in taipan country was how long would I have to
reach hospital if things went pear-shaped? I don’t think
they can be matched by any other Australian elapid; their
size, strength, agility and lethal weaponry demand the
greatest of respect.
My introduction to taipans was in 1972 when I first came
tail-handling, but don’t lose concentration. It was one of
those ‘flyers’; elegantly gliding near my shoulder, biting
the bag and enthusiastically launching at my torso. I felt
like a matador avoiding the horns of a bull, albeit in a
rather daggy costume. I soon learned that once you have
hold of a taipan by its tail, never drop it - no matter what
- unless you can jump three metres backwards in an
instant.
I once held a solid seven-foot taipan that was in
sloughing mode, with cloudy eyes and puffed-up head. I
thought it was going to be an easy one. As I grabbed its
tail, the snake managed to swing around a grass tussock;
its head was aiming straight for me, but fortunately I was
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