Eastern Brown Snake

Significance to Humans

The eastern brown snake is considered to be the second most venomous terrestrial snake.

Clinically, the venom of the eastern brown snake is known to cause diarrhea, dizziness, collapse or convulsions, renal failure, paralysis and cardiac arrest. Without medical treatment, bites can be fatal. As this species tends to initiate their defence with non-fatal bites, the untreated mortality rate in most snakebite cases reported is 10–20%, which is not very high.

General Description

Adult eastern brown snakes are highly variable in colour. Whilst usually a uniform shade of brown, they can have various patterns including speckles and bands, and range from a very pale fawn colour through to black, including orange, silver, yellow and grey. Juveniles can be banded and have a black head, with a lighter band behind, a black nape, and numerous red-brown spots on the belly.