Australia is home to 21 of the 25 most venomous snakes in the world and it looks like the land down under just got a whole lot more frightening.
A team of biologists from the University of Queensland have discovered a new species of bandy-bandy snake at the Weipa on the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula. Researchers actually discovered the new species when they were researching sea snakes in the area.
“Bandy-bandy is a burrowing snake, so Freek Vonk from the Naturalis Museum and I were surprised to find it on a concrete block by the sea,” lead biologist Professor Bryan Fry said in a statement. “We later discovered that the snake had slithered over from a pile of bauxite rubble waiting to be loaded onto a ship. On examination by my student, Chantelle Derez, the bandy-bandy turned out to be a new species, visually and genetically distinct from those found on the Australian East coast and parts of the interior.”
Another snake was discovered in its natural habitat close by in Weipa, while another had been killed by a car. A further two were also discovered, bringing the total number to five. While it’s an exciting time, researchers already fear the new species could be close to extinction.
“Bauxite mining is a major economic activity in the region, and it may be reshaping the environment to the detriment of native plants and animals,” Professor Fry added. “The importance of such discoveries goes beyond simply documenting what is out there, as venoms are rich sources of compounds that can be used to develop new medications.”
The snakes are around 40cm long and have white and black bands along their bodies. The story has already been picked up by major news outlets around the world, with the public divided over the new find.
One person on Facebook wrote: “Another bloomin snake for me to worry about [sic]”.
A second person actually thought the snake was an introduced species. “Someone has brought in into our country from somewhere else, good security we have at the airport,” they said.
A further message read: “Been around since I was a kid. We had them on our property in Armidale”.
Despite inflicting fear in many, researchers have stressed the importance of the new discovery.
“Every species is precious and we need to protect them all, since we can’t predict where the next wonder-drug will come from,” Professor Fry said. “The discovery of this enigmatic little snake is symptomatic of the much more fundamental problem of how little we know about our biodiversity and how much may be lost before we even discover it.”