Highland copperhead

The highland copperhead (Austrelaps ramsayi), also known as Ramsay's copperhead,[3] is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Australia.

Austrelaps ramsayi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Austrelaps
Species:
A. ramsayi
Binomial name
Austrelaps ramsayi
(Krefft, 1864)
Synonyms[2]
  • Hoplocephalus ramsayi
    Krefft, 1864
  • Denisonia ramsayi
    — Boulenger, 1896
  • Austrelaps ramsayi
    — Rawlinson, 1991

Taxonomy

Gerard Krefft described the highland copperhead in 1864 as Hoplocephalus ramsayi from a specimen collected in Braidwood, New South Wales.[4] The specific name, ramsayi, is in honour of Edward Pierson Ramsay, who was an Australian ornithologist and herpetologist,[3] and who collected the holotype specimen.[4]

Description

A. ramsayi has an average total length (including tail) of 113 cm (44 inches). It can vary in upper (dorsal) colour from mid to very dark brown, with a creamy yellow belly tinged with red between the differing colours.

Distribution and habitat

The highlands copperhead inhabits the Alpine regions of eastern Australia, and is common in the Southern Highlands of NSW, including Mittagong, Bowral and Moss Vale.

A. ramsayi is found in montane heath, woodland, sclerophyll forests, along water bodies, and in swampy areas with thick clumps of tussock grass.[5]

Reproduction

Austrelaps ramsayi is ovoviviparous, with between 9 and 31 young per brood.[6]

References
  1. Shea G, Cogger H, Greenlees M (2018). "Austrelaps ramsayi ". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T102704076A102704088. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T102704076A102704088.en. Downloaded on 03 December 2019.
  2. Species Austrelaps ramsayi at The Reptile Database . www.reptile-database.org.
  3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Austrelaps ramsayi, p. 216).
  4. Krefft G (1864). "Description of Three New Species of Australian Snakes". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1864: 180–182. (Hoplocephalus ramsayi, new species, pp. 180-181).
  5. http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/threatenedspecies/07227tpagssch6pt2.pdf
  6. http://www.arod.com.au/arod/reptilia/Squamata/Elapidae/Austrelaps/ramsayi

Further reading
  • Boulenger GA (1896). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III. Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ) ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I-XXV. (Denisonia ramsayi, new combination, p. 338).
  • Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN 978-0643100350.
  • Rawlinson PA (1991). "Taxonomy and distribution of the Australian tiger snakes (Notechis) and copperheads (Austrelaps) (Serpentes, Elapidae)". Proc. Royal Soc. Victoria 103 (2): 125–135. (Austrelaps ramsayi, new combination).
  • Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. ISBN 978-1921517280.



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