Common Death Adder

Acanthophis antarcticus. Brookton Highway, WA. 

One of the more interesting finds from herping outings. Death adders are easily distinguished by their triangular heads, and short, thick bodies, which taper into a thin tail. Death adders are the 4th most venomous snake in Australia, and hunt by an ambush technique. Using their thin tail as a lure (wiggling it, giving the impression of an insect), death adders wait for prey to pass, attacking when in close proximity. While creating a safety risk for bush-walkers, like many snakes, the death adder is not actively aggressive.

The death adder pictured was located around 10pm, next to a concrete underpass along Brookton Highway.