Suta flagellum
Silhouette: SeismicShrimp · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The little whip snake (Suta flagellum), also known commonly as the whip hooded snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Australia. S. flagellum can have a total length (including tail) of up to 45 cm (18 in). Its most notable feature is the black patch, shaped like an hourglass, which extends from the back of its nape to between the eyes. The body of the snake is orange to tan dorsally, and cream-colored ventrally.
S. flagellum is generally nocturnal and found under rocks and logs. The whip hooded snake preys upon lizards and frogs. In New South Wales, the preferred natural habitats of S. flagellum are temperate grasslands and grassy woodlands.
The little whip snake is venomous, though virtually harmless to humans. S. flagellum is viviparous. Brood size is seven or fewer. Boulenger GA (1896). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III. Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ)... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Whip Hooded Snake sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 26 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 17th most-seen of the 23 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May–June and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Whip Hooded Snake in Melbourne on a given day, against under 5% in July–October and December–April, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Whip Hooded Snake sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Melbourne, in our data
Melbourne is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Whip Hooded Snake sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Elapidae
The closest relatives of the Whip Hooded Snake that you can see in Melbourne (family Elapidae, Elapid Snakes) are Eastern Tiger Snake (about 10%), Lowlands Copperhead (about 10%) and Eastern Brown Snake (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Whip Hooded Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Melbourne (26 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
