An encounter with one of the world’s most venomous snakes in an Australian desert: what more could a reptile enthusiast want?​​​
IMAGINE THAT YOU’RE A passionate surfer. You talk about surfing to anyone who’ll listen; read every surfing book and magazine you can nd; spend all your spare time travelling in search of the best waves. Now, translate that enthusiasm into finding and photographing reptiles in the wild and you’ll begin to understand the passion that I have for these animals. It’s this enthusiasm that led fellow wildlife photographer Tim Squires and me on an expedition into the remote Great Victoria Desert, about 1500km inland from Perth, where we hoped to nd and photograph the western desert taipan (Oxyuranus temporalis).
Most Australians would have heard of taipans because these reptiles are among the world’s most infamous snakes and Australia is home to all three known species. These are the notorious coastal taipan, which is also found in southern New Guinea; the inland taipan, sometimes known popularly as the fierce snake and believed to have the most toxic venom of any land snake; and the recently described western desert taipan.
They are all formidable snake species, possessing large fangs, extremely potent venom and an agility that demands the utmost respect from even the most experienced of snake handlers. Returning to the surfing analogy, photographing taipans is like big-wave riding – succeed, and you won’t remember a happier moment; get it wrong and it may cost you your life.
Tim knows about this better than most. It’s almost a year since our last taipan expedition, during which he nearly died after being bitten by an inland taipan. It’s an ordeal neither of us is eager to repeat.
But where there’s risk, there’s reward, and, for me, there’s no greater reward than seeing these wild places and animals with my own eyes.
Denne historien er fra May - June 2018-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra May - June 2018-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Loveday Internment Camp, SA A
DURING WORLD WAR II, civilians n Australia deemed \"enemy aliens\" - mostly those of German, Italian and Japanese descent were housed in internment camps.
THE STORYTELLERS OF THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
More than 100 dedicated Master Reef Guides are sharing the GBR's most important stories with visitors in a bid to inspire its greater protection.
A BEAUTIFUL DISASTER
Does last summer's mass coral bleaching event sound a death knell for Australia's beloved Great Barrier Reef? \"Not on my watch!\" is the message coming from he army of heartbroken, but resolute, marine scientists who've responded to the crisis by doubling down on their research.
AROUND AUSTRALIA IN 44 DAYS
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first aerial circumnavigation of Australia. Aviator Michael Smith retraces the flight in his unique amphibious flying boat, Southern Sun, starting and finishing at RAAF Base Point Cook, on Melbourne's Port Phillip, taking in 15,000km of vast, diverse and stunning coastline in between.
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More than 3000sq.km of forests on NSW's Mid North Coast have been earmarked for the Great Koala National Park. But there's still work to be done before this proposed reserve becomes the safe haven koalas desperately need.
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Sure, you can't avoid those cute little marsupials that made Rottnest Island world-famous, but there's so much more to life on this ocean-ringed jewel off the Western Australian coast.
A WILD POLO TUSSLE
It's an event reminiscent of a Banjo Paterson poem. For 35 years, in the High Country 200km east of Melbourne, city polo players have gathered annually at Cobungra, Victoria's largest cattle station, to vie with a rural team for the Dinner Plain Polo Cup.
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Contemporary marine park management is infused with traditional knowledge to tackle new threats on the Great Barrier Reef.
LOOKING FOR TJAKURA
The search is on across Australia's deserts for a culturally important vulnerable lizard.
RESCUING THE CHUDITCH
After intensive planning, recovery for this endangered marsupial species is being stepped up to secure its future.