Elapidae
Ingram's Brown Snake
VenomousPseudonaja ingrami
The Ingram's Brown Snake (Pseudonaja ingrami) is a venomous snake in the Elapidae family.
If you are bitten
This is a venomous snake. Treat any bite as a medical emergency: stay calm, keep the bitten limb still and roughly level with the heart, remove rings and tight clothing, and get to emergency care immediately. Do not apply a tourniquet, cut the wound, apply ice, or try to suck out venom. Call your local emergency number or poison center.
- Family
- Elapidae
- Danger
- high
About the Ingram's Brown Snake
Ingram's brown snake (Pseudonaja ingrami) is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Australia.
Taxonomy
Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger described the species in 1908 as Diemenia ingrami, from a specimen collected on Alexandria Station in the Northern Territory. The specific name, ingrami, is in honour of Collingwood Ingram, who was an English ornithologist and horticulturist. The brown snakes were moved to the genus Pseudonaja by Australian naturalist Eric Worrell in the early 1960s on the basis of skull morphology, and reinforced by American herpetologist Samuel Booker McDowell in 1967 on the basis of the muscles of the venom glands. This classification has been followed by subsequent authors. Genetic analysis indicates that Ingram's brown snake is diverged from the ancestor of all other brown snakes except the more basal ringed brown snake (P. modesta) and speckled brown snake (P. guttata).
Description
Ingram's brown snake grows to 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) in total length (including tail). It has a grey-brown to dark brown head and nape, black-brown to golden brown upper parts. It has 17 rows of dorsal scales at midbody, 190 to 220 ventral scales, 55 to 70 divided subcaudal scales (occasionally some of the anterior ones are undivided), and a divided anal scale.
Distribution and habitat
P. ingrami is native to a broad swathe of inland Australia, from northwestern Queensland to northeastern Western Australia. It lives in tussock grasslands on black soil, retreating into earth crevices.
Feeding
Ingram's brown snake eats small birds and mammals.
Reproduction
P. ingrami is oviparous, with clutches ranging between 12 and 18 eggs.
Adapted from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA.
Frequently asked: Ingram's Brown Snake
- Is the Ingram's Brown Snake venomous?
- Yes. The Ingram's Brown Snake (Pseudonaja ingrami) is venomous and belongs to the Elapidae family (cobra, mamba, coral or sea snake). Its bite is considered high risk to people. Treat any bite as a medical emergency.
- Is the Ingram's Brown Snake poisonous?
- Snakes are venomous, not poisonous. "Poisonous" means harmful to eat or touch; "venomous" means injecting toxins through a bite. The Ingram's Brown Snake is venomous, delivering venom through a bite.
- Is the Ingram's Brown Snake dangerous?
- This is a venomous snake. Treat any bite as a medical emergency: stay calm, keep the bitten limb still and roughly level with the heart, remove rings and tight clothing, and get to emergency care immediately. Do not apply a tourniquet, cut the wound, apply ice, or try to suck out venom. Call your local emergency number or poison center.
- What does the Ingram's Brown Snake eat?
- Ingram's brown snake eats small birds and mammals.
If you are bitten by the Ingram's Brown Snake
Do
- Get away from the snake and stay calm. Most bites worsen when people panic or try again to handle the snake.
- Call 911 or Poison Control (1-800-222-1222) right away. Antivenom works best when given early.
- Note the time of the bite and, from a safe distance, the snake's color and pattern, a phone photo is enough. Do not chase it.
- Keep the bitten limb still and at roughly heart level. Sit or lie down and limit movement.
- Remove rings, watches, and tight clothing near the bite before swelling starts.
- Gently wash the bite with soap and water and cover it with a clean, dry dressing.
Do not
- Do not cut the wound or try to suck out the venom.
- Do not apply a tourniquet or ice.
- Do not drink alcohol or caffeine.
- Do not take aspirin or ibuprofen, they can worsen bleeding. Acetaminophen is safer for pain.
- Do not try to catch or kill the snake. A dead snake can still bite by reflex.
First-aid guidance adapted from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC NIOSH), Venomous Snakes. Educational only; always follow the instructions of emergency responders.
More Elapidae snakes
Eastern Brown SnakePseudonaja textilis
DugitePseudonaja affinis
Western Brown SnakePseudonaja mengdeni
Strap-Snouted Brown SnakePseudonaja aspidorhyncha
Ringed Brown SnakePseudonaja modesta
Peninsula Brown SnakePseudonaja inframacula
Northern Brown SnakePseudonaja nuchalis
Speckled Brown SnakePseudonaja guttata
Classification
How scientists group this snake, from the broadest category down to the exact species. Each step narrows to its closest relatives.
- OrderThe broad group of scaled reptiles: all snakes and lizards
- Squamata
- FamilyA group of related snakes that share key traits
- Elapidae
- GenusA close-knit group of very similar species
- Pseudonaja
- SpeciesThis exact snake, named in the two-part scientific name
- Pseudonaja ingrami
Keep learning
- Are Snakes Dangerous? The Real Risk, in PerspectiveMost snakes are harmless and avoid people. Here is the honest picture of snakebite risk worldwide and how to lower your own.
- Snakebite First Aid: What to Do (and What Never to Do)A clear, CDC-based guide to snakebite first aid: the steps that help, the popular myths that hurt, and how to tell a serious bite from a minor one.
- Venomous vs Nonvenomous: How to Tell the DifferenceThe folk rules for telling venomous snakes apart, where each one fails, and why location-based identification beats guessing by sight.
- What to Do If You Find a SnakeFound a snake at home or on a trail? Here is how to stay calm, give it space, identify it safely, and know when to call a professional.
Distribution from GBIF & iNaturalist. Venom status per CDC. Background: Wikipedia. Informational only. Never handle a snake to identify it.