The little whip snake (''Suta flagellum''), also known commonly as the whip hooded snake, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

venomous snake Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Elapidae Elapidae (, commonly known as elapids ; grc, ἔλλοψ ''éllops'' "sea-fish") is a family of snakes characterized by their permanently erect fangs at the front of the mouth. Most elapids are venomous, with the exception of the genus Emydoceph ...

. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Description

''S. flagellum'' can have a total length (including tail) of up to . Its most notable feature is the black patch, shaped like an hourglass, which extends from the back of its nape to between the eyes. The body of the snake is orange to tan

dorsally Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

, and cream-colored ventrally.

Behavior

''S. flagellum'' is generally

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

and found under rocks and logs.

Diet

The whip hooded snake

preys Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

upon

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

s and

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

Habitat

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, the preferred natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s of ''S. flagellum'' are temperate

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

s and grassy

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

Venom

The little whip snake is

venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

ous, though virtually harmless to humans.

Reproduction

''S. flagellum'' is

viviparous Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the m ...

. www.reptile-database.org. Brood size is seven or fewer.

References

* 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 flagellum'', p. 340). * Cogger HG (2014). ''Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition''. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. . * Coventry AJ (1971). "Identification of the Black-headed Snakes (''Denisonia'') within Victoria". ''The Victorian Naturalist'' 88: 304–306. (''Denisonia flagellum'', p. 305, Figure 1A). * McCoy F (1878). ''Natural History of Victoria. Prodromus of the Zoology of Victoria; or, Figures and Descriptions of the Living Species of All Classes of the Victorian Indigenous Animals. Volume I. (Decades I. to X.)'' Melbourne: John Ferres, Government Printer / London: Trübner and Co. 223 pp. + Plates 1-49. (''Hoplocephalus flagellum'', new species, Decade II, pp. 7–8 + Plate 11, figures 1, 1a, 1b, 1d, 1d). *Turner, Grant (1998). "Evidence of diurnal mate-searching in male little whip snakes, ''Suta flagellum'' (Elapidae)". ''Herpetofauna, Sydney'' 28 (1): 46–50. *Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). ''A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition''. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. . Snakes of Australia Suta Reptiles described in 1878 Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN {{Elapidae-stub