The eastern dwarf mulga snake (Pseudechis pailsei), also known
commonly as the eastern pygmy mulga snake and the false king brown snake, is a
species of
venomous snake in the
familyElapidae. The species, which is native to
Australia, was genetically confirmed as a distinct species in 2017.[2]
Taxonomy
The eastern dwarf mulga snake was originally described in 1998 as Pailsus pailsei by
Raymond Hoser.
Wolfgang Wüster identified that its
specific name should be spelt pailsi under taxonomic rules in 2001.[3] However, according to the
International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (Article 32.5.1) the original spelling should still be used, even though it is an incorrect latinisation.[1]
Etymology
The specific name, pailsi, is in honour of Australian reptile breeder
Roy Pails (born 1956).[4]
Geographic range
P. pailsi is found in northern
Queensland, Australia.[1]
Description
P. pailsi may attain a total length (including tail) of 107 cm (42 in).[1]
^Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp.
ISBN978-1-4214-0135-5. (Pseudechis pailsei, p. 199).
Further reading
Cogger H (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp.
ISBN978-0643100350.
Hoser R (1998). "A New Snake from Queensland, Australia (Serpentes: Elapidae)". Monitor10 (1): 5–9, 31. (Pailsus, new genus; Pailsus pailsei, new species).
Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp.
ISBN978-1921517280.
Wüster, Wolfgang; Dumbrell, Alex J.; Hay, Chris; Pook, Catharine E.; Williams, David J.; Fry, Bryan Grieg (2005). "Snakes across the Strait: trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus, and Pseudechis)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution34 (1): 1–14.