It was 100% Taipan. I lived in the Top End over 20 years and much of that time out bush. In all that time I had never definately seen a taipan though had caught many king browns, western browns etc.
2 years ago I went back to Darwin in the dry season and a mate picked me up from the airport. He had a frozen Taipan with him......it had been hit on the road to Gunlom(UDP) right in front of him and was still squirming when he found it. We lodged it at the museum( I think at the time the museum said they were very happy to have it as it was their first record from the mainland of the NT....they had several specimens from the islands..Melville and Bathurst where they are apparently more common). He had only seen one other Taipan in all his years up there and that was from the same area. Coincidently, the only Taipans I have seen up there were on that day and the day after!
While you hear a few locals and tour guides saying they have seen taipans, I know of only a couple of reliable reports from people I trust.
The day after arriving in Darwin at midday I came across a Taipan on the road near Cooinda in Kakadu. It was about 1.5m in length. I captured it and tried to snap a few photos(will chase these up and post them). While trying to head the snake I received a very quick prick on my finger which drew a spot of blood(not a proper bite but you never know). Nothing came of the "bite" so I was very lucky. The whole exercise was basically a lesson in what not to do in catching a venomous snake; tailing it, holding it in one hand while trying to dig the camera out of my backpack in the troopy, photos with camera in one hand and snake in the other, and then trying to head it through a pillowcase. All stupid, stupid decisions however I knew if I had no evidence that no one would believe it was a Taipan.
The snake was not overly aggressive but had a type of nervous energy that I have not felt in all the other snakes I have handled, and when it tapped my finger through a pillow case it was lightning fast.
Like the 2 posters above I too would not believe most people who told me they had seen a Taipan in the Top End, however I was as surprised as anyone else.
The toads have really knocked the King Browns up there, as they have many other things. King Browns used to be reasonably common. With their numbers severly depleted could this be making more room for the Taipans to put in an appearance?
Will chase up those photos and post them even though they are pretty terrible.
cheers
Greg
