Little whip snake

The little whip snake (Suta flagellum), also known commonly as the whip hooded snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Australia.

Little whip snake
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Elapidae
Genus:	Suta
Species:	S. flagellum
Binomial name
Suta flagellum (F. McCoy, 1878)
Synonyms
Hoploceaphalus flagellum F. McCoy, 1878 Denisonia flagellum — Boulenger, 1896 Cryptophis flagellum — Worrell, 1961 Suta flagellum — McDowell, 1970 Unechis flagellum — Cogger, 1975 Rhinoplocephalus flagellum — Storr, 1984 Parasuta flagellum — Greer, 2006

Description

S. flagellum can have a total length (including tail) of up to 45 cm (18 in). 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, and cream-colored ventrally.

Behavior

S. flagellum is generally nocturnal and found under rocks and logs.

Diet

The whip hooded snake preys upon lizards and frogs.

Habitat

In New South Wales, the preferred natural habitats of S. flagellum are temperate grasslands and grassy woodlands.

Venom

The little whip snake is venomous, though virtually harmless to humans.

Reproduction

S. flagellum is viviparous. Brood size is seven or fewer.

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 flagellum, p. 340).
• Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN 978-0643100350.
• 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. ISBN 978-1921517280.