Wildlife in North Queensland Rainforests
Slaty-grey Snakes, Dubious Dtella and Amethystine Pythons!
If you know where to look, you can discover an abundance of wildlife around Skyrail Rainforest Cableway.
A recent wildlife observation night hosted by Skyrail’s Environment Department and Rangers uncovered some interesting residents in the bush land around the Smithfield terminal.
Slaty-Gray Snake. Photo by Tim Hackwood.
The first animal to make an appearance was a Slaty-grey Snake (Stegonotus cucullatus). These snakes are very common around the Cairns area and are usually found at night near water. They are non-venomous, but closely resemble the potentially dangerous Eastern Small-eyed Snake (Cryptophis nigrescens). This is an important reminder that it can be difficult to determine whether a snake is venomous or not. As such it’s best that all snakes are left alone.
Dubious Dtella. Photo by Tim Hackwood.
As the night drew to a close, a medium-sized Amethystine Python (Morelia kinghorni) was spotted in the front gardens. None of the Rangers had ever come across this individual before so this was a great find!
Photo by Tim Hackwood.
With the next observation night planned to occur during the wet-season, who knows what may be uncovered residing in the world’s oldest tropical rainforest.
Australian Tropical rainforest information and Images supplied by Skyrail Environmental Ranger & Wildlife photographer Tim Hackwood.
