All that glitters is not
The golden Tiger Snake
of Tasmania.
Simon Fearn reveals that there is real gold in ‘them thar hills’, but warns potential
prospectors to be wary of forgeries.
Tasmania’s cool and highly variable
climate has undoubtedly played a
significant role in selection for dorsal
colouration in Tiger Snakes
(Notechis scutatus).These large
snakes thrive under conditions which
must be close to the lower limits of
their thermal tolerances, particularly
in relation to reproduction. There is
therefore a general overall tendency
for melanism throughout Tasmania,
but especially in cool, high rainfall
areas of the west and southwest, as
well as the extensive central plateau
where it can snow at any time of the
year.
Banding on Tasmanian specimens is
also generally less defined than
many mainland Tiger Snakes, and
band width is typically reduced to
between half and one and a half
scales. A significant proportion of
predominantly black specimens
display banding that ranges from
bold contrasts of brown, orange,
yellow or white to barely discernible
cross bands that can only be
perceived in strong sunlight. On
many melanotic specimens banding
is reduced to yellow or white edging
on the first few rows of dorsolateral
scales. Completely melanotic Tiger
Snakes can occur anywhere in
Tasmania, and although in the
minority, are more common in the
Central Highlands. In warmer, low-
lying and particularly coastal
habitats in eastern Tasmania a
bewildering array of colour
variations can be encountered; from
rich yellows to shades of tan, brown,
grey, silver and some that appear
almost greenish under appropriate
lighting. The vast majority of these
animals display darker cross band-
ing, but in the forests of the Great
Western Tiers, in the foothills of the
central plateau, the author has
Left: wild yellow Tiger Snake
exhibiting prominent banding
from Railton.
Photo by M. Wapstra.
Above right: ‘washed out’ Tiger
Snakes raised without UV light.
These are from the late Phillip
Goss's collection. The lower
snake would be predominately
greyish-black with indistinct
yellow bands if raised outdoors.
Photo by S. Fearn.
Right: this large Tiger Snake
has been raised indoors and
would be horribly sunburnt if
put outdoors in summer.
Photo by S. Fearn.