Acanthophis: Difference between revisions

Acanthophis
	Acanthophis laevis
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Elapidae
Genus:	Acanthophis; Daudin, 1803
Species
	See taxonomy

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Acanthophis is a genus of elapid snakes. Commonly called death adders, they are native to Australia, New Guinea and nearby islands, and are among the most venomous snakes in the world. Despite their common name, they are not adders at all and belong to the Elapidae family (like cobras). The name of the genus derives from the Ancient Greek akanthos/ἄκανθος ('spine') and ophis/ὄφις ('snake'), referring to the spine on the death adder's tail.

Eight species are listed by ITIS,^[2] though it remains unclear how many species this genus includes, with figures ranging from 4 to 15 species being quoted.

Taxonomy

French naturalist François Marie Daudin established the genus Acanthophis in 1803, with the common death adder (A. cerastinus) as its only species.^[3]

Although the death adders resemble vipers of the family Viperidae, they are actually members of the family Elapidae, which includes cobras, mambas, and coral snakes.

It remains unclear how many species are included in this genus. Traditionally, only A. antarcticus, A. praelongus and A. pyrrhus have been recognised. In 1985, Wells & Wellington proposed four new species – A. armstrongi, A. hawkei, A. lancasteri, and A. schistos – but these were not widely adopted at the time.^[4] In 1998 five new species were described (A. barnetti, A. crotalusei, A. cummingi, A. wellsi and A. woolfi)^[5] and in 2002 an additional three were described (A. groenveldi, A. macgregori and A. yuwoni).^[6] These were received with scepticism,^[7]^[8]^[9] and only A. wellsi, where an extended description has been published,^[7] has been widely recognised.^[2]^[10] Further confusion exists over the death adders from Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. They have variously been placed in A. antarcticus or A. praelongus. In 2005 it was shown that neither is appropriate, and the New Guinea death adders fall into two main clades:^[11] The rather smooth-scaled A. laevis complex (including death adders from Seram), and the rough-scaled A. rugosus complex. The latter can be divided into two sub-clades; one, A. rugosus sensu stricto, from southern New Guinea, and a second, A. hawkei, from northern Queensland and the Northern Territory in Australia. It is likely some of these include more than one species, as populations included in e.g. A. laevis show extensive variation in both pattern and scalation.^[11]

Species

Species^[2]^[10]	Authority^[10]	Subspecies*	Common name	Geographic range
A. antarcticus^T	(Shaw, 1794)	2^[12]	Common death adder	Australia^[11]
A. cryptamydros	Maddock, Ellis, Doughty, L.A. Smith & Wüster, 2015	0^[13]	Kimberley death adder	Australia^[13]^[14]
A. hawkei	Wells & Wellington, 1985	0^[15]	Barkly Tableland death adder	Australia^[15]
A. laevis	Macleay, 1878	0^[16]	Smooth-scaled death adder	Indonesia, Papua New Guinea^[16]
A. praelongus	Ramsay, 1877	0^[17]	Northern death adder	Australia^[11]
A. pyrrhus	Boulenger, 1898	0^[18]	Desert death adder	Australia^[18]
A. rugosus	Loveridge, 1948	0^[19]	Rough-scaled death adder	Australia, Indonesia^[19]
A. wellsi	Hoser, 1998	1^[20]	Pilbara death adder	Australia^[20]

* Not including the nominate subspecies.
^TType species.

Description

Death Adder. Photo taken at Brisbane Forest Park, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Death adders are very viper-like in appearance, having a short, robust body, triangular shaped heads, small subocular scales, many small scales on the top of the head, and elevated supraocular scales. Dorsal scales may be smooth or keeled. Body patterning is generally crossbanding, and they have vertically elliptical pupils.^[21] Their fangs are also longer and more mobile than for most other elapids, although still far from the size seen in some of the true vipers. Despite their name, they are not related to adders, which are members of the family Viperidae, and their similar appearance is due to convergent evolution.

They normally take 2–3 years to reach adult size. Females are generally slightly larger than the males. They can also be easily distinguished from other Australian snakes because of a small, worm like lure on the end of their tail, which is used to attract prey. Most have large bands around their bodies, though the colour itself is variable, depending on their locality. Colours are usually black, grey or red and yellow, but also include brown and greenish-grey.

Death adders are ovoviviparous with the embryos developing in membranous sacs inside the female who will give birth to litters of 8 to 30 live neonates.^[21]

Origin of name

Early settlers of Australia called them "deaf adders".^[22] How "deaf" became "death" is not recorded.

Unlike other snakes that tend to flee from human disturbance, the death adder is inclined to hold its ground, leading to the notion that the death adder cannot hear. However, death adders, like other snakes, perceive ground vibrations.

Hunting

Unlike most snakes, death adders do not actively hunt, but rather lie in ambush and draw their prey to them.^[23] When hungry, death adders bury themselves among the substrate. This may be leaf litter, soil or sand, depending on their environment. The only part of themselves they expose are their head and their tail, both generally very well camouflaged. The end of the tail is used for caudal luring and when wiggled, it is easily mistaken for a grub or worm. When the snake's prey attempts to seize it, the death adder strikes. Although it has been claimed to have the quickest strike of any snake in the world,^[24] this topic has not been well enough studied to make reliable comparisons.^[25] They commonly feed on local geckos such as the Dubious dtella.

Venom

Death adders can inject on average 40–100 mg of highly toxic venom with a bite. The LD₅₀ of the venom was reported as 0.4–0.5 mg/kg subcutaneous and it is completely neurotoxic, containing neither haemotoxins nor myotoxins, unlike the venoms of most venomous snakes.

A bite from a death adder can cause paralysis which seems minor at first but can cause death from a complete respiratory shutdown in six hours. Symptoms of envenomation can be reversed through the use of death adder antivenom, or using anticholinesterases, which break the synaptic blockade by making acetylcholine more available to the parasympathetic nervous system, thus mitigating the effects of the venom.

Before antivenom was introduced, it is reported that about 50% of death adder bites were fatal. A fatal bite is less likely now as the anti-venom is widely available and the progression of envenomation symptoms is slow.

References

^ "Acanthophis". Dahms Tierleben. [www.dahmstierleben.de/systematik/Reptilien/Squamata/Serpentes/colubroidea/Elapidae].
^ ^a ^b ^c "Acanthophis ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
^ Daudin, François Marie (1802). Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, des reptiles : ouvrage faisant suite à l'Histoire naturelle générale et particulière, composée par Leclerc de Buffon, et rédigée par C.S. Sonnini. Vol. 97. Paris: F. Dufart. pp. 289–296.
^ Ellis, Ryan J.; Kaiser, Hinrich; Maddock, Simon T.; Doughty, Paul; Wüster, Wolfgang (29 June 2021). "An evaluation of the nomina for death adders (Acanthophis Daudin, 1803) proposed by Wells & Wellington (1985), and confirmation of A. cryptamydros Maddock et al., 2015 as the valid name for the Kimberley death adder". Zootaxa. 4995 (1): 161–172. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4995.1.9. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 34186811. [1]
^ Hoser, R. (1998): Death adders (genus Acanthophis): an overview, including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies. Monitor 9(2): 20-30, 33-41. available online
^ Hoser, R. (2002): Death Adders (Genus Acanthophis): An Updated overview, including descriptions of 3 New Island species and 2 New Australian subspecies. Crocodilian - Journal of the Victorian Association of Amateur Herpetologists, September 2002: 5-11, 16-22, 24-30, front and back covers. available online
^ ^a ^b Aplin, K.P. & S.C. Donnellan (1999): An extended description of the Pilbara Death Adder, Acanthophis wellsi Hoser (Serpentes: Elapidae), with notes on the Desert Death Adder, A. pyrrhus Boulenger, and identification of a possible hybrid zone. Records of the Western Australian Museum 19: 277-298.
^ Wüster, W., B. Bush, J.S. Keogh, M. O'Shea & R. Shine (2001): Taxonomic contributions in the "amateur" literature: comments on recent descriptions of new genera and species by Raymond Hoser. Litteratura Serpentium 21: 67-79, 86-91. available online (PDF) Archived 9 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine
^ Williams, D., W. Wüster & B. Fry (2006): The good, the bad and the ugly: Australian snake taxonomists and a history of the taxonomy of Australia's venomous snakes. Toxicon 48: 919-930. available online (PDF) Archived 25 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b ^c Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Wüster, Wolfgang; Dumbrell; Hay, C.; Pook, C.E.; Williams, D.J.; Fry, B.G. (2005). "Snakes across the Strait: Trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus and Pseudechis)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 34 (1): 1–14. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018. PMID 15579378.
^ Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis antarcticus.
^ ^a ^b Maddock, S. T., R. J. Ellis, P. Dougthy, L. A. Smith & W. Wüster (2015): A new species of death adder (Acanthophis: Serpentes: Elapidae) from north-western Australia. Zootaxa 4007: 301–326. available online (PDF)
^ (14 Sep 2015). New Species of Venomous Snake Discovered in Australia.
^ ^a ^b Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis hawkei.
^ ^a ^b Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis laevis.
^ Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis praelongus.
^ ^a ^b Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis pyrrhus.
^ ^a ^b Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis rugosus.
^ ^a ^b Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis wellsi.
^ ^a ^b "Death Adders". University of Melbourne. 2 May 2017. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
^ "CSL Antivenom Handbook: CSL Death Adder Antivenom". Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 26 May 2013.
^ Mahony, Stephen (2020). "Common Death Adder". The Australian Museum. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
^ Baker, Kevin (4 July 2016). The World's Most Dangerous Animals SUBTITLE. eBookIt.com. ISBN 9781456626976.
^ Penning, David A.; Sawvel, Baxter; Moon, Brad R. (March 2016). "Debunking the viper's strike: harmless snakes kill a common assumption". Biology Letters. 12 (3): 20160011. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2016.0011. ISSN 1744-9561. PMC 4843225. PMID 26979562.

External links

Media related to Acanthophis at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Acanthophis at Wikispecies
A severe case of stomatitis (canker or mouthrot) in a Death Adder (Acanthophis antarcticus) associated with a reovirus infection. Boydii (Autumn 2004):16-17. Treatment
Husbandry and breeding of Death Adders
WCH Clinical Toxinology

[1] "Acanthophis". Dahms Tierleben. [www.dahmstierleben.de/systematik/Reptilien/Squamata/Serpentes/colubroidea/Elapidae].

[itis-2] "Acanthophis ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 10 March 2011.

[3] Daudin, François Marie (1802). Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, des reptiles : ouvrage faisant suite à l'Histoire naturelle générale et particulière, composée par Leclerc de Buffon, et rédigée par C.S. Sonnini. Vol. 97. Paris: F. Dufart. pp. 289–296.

[4] Ellis, Ryan J.; Kaiser, Hinrich; Maddock, Simon T.; Doughty, Paul; Wüster, Wolfgang (29 June 2021). "An evaluation of the nomina for death adders (Acanthophis Daudin, 1803) proposed by Wells & Wellington (1985), and confirmation of A. cryptamydros Maddock et al., 2015 as the valid name for the Kimberley death adder". Zootaxa. 4995 (1): 161–172. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4995.1.9. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 34186811. [1]

[Hoser1998-5] Hoser, R. (1998): Death adders (genus Acanthophis): an overview, including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies. Monitor 9(2): 20-30, 33-41. available online

[Hoser2002-6] Hoser, R. (2002): Death Adders (Genus Acanthophis): An Updated overview, including descriptions of 3 New Island species and 2 New Australian subspecies. Crocodilian - Journal of the Victorian Association of Amateur Herpetologists, September 2002: 5-11, 16-22, 24-30, front and back covers. available online

[Aplin1999-7] Aplin, K.P. & S.C. Donnellan (1999): An extended description of the Pilbara Death Adder, Acanthophis wellsi Hoser (Serpentes: Elapidae), with notes on the Desert Death Adder, A. pyrrhus Boulenger, and identification of a possible hybrid zone. Records of the Western Australian Museum 19: 277-298.

[Wuster2001-8] Wüster, W., B. Bush, J.S. Keogh, M. O'Shea & R. Shine (2001): Taxonomic contributions in the "amateur" literature: comments on recent descriptions of new genera and species by Raymond Hoser. Litteratura Serpentium 21: 67-79, 86-91. available online (PDF) Archived 9 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine

[Williams2006-9] Williams, D., W. Wüster & B. Fry (2006): The good, the bad and the ugly: Australian snake taxonomists and a history of the taxonomy of Australia's venomous snakes. Toxicon 48: 919-930. available online (PDF) Archived 25 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine

[ReptileDatabaseGenus-10] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis.

[Wuster2005-11] Wüster, Wolfgang; Dumbrell; Hay, C.; Pook, C.E.; Williams, D.J.; Fry, B.G. (2005). "Snakes across the Strait: Trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus and Pseudechis)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 34 (1): 1–14. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018. PMID 15579378.

[ReptileDatabaseAntarcticus-12] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis antarcticus.

[Maddock2015-13] Maddock, S. T., R. J. Ellis, P. Dougthy, L. A. Smith & W. Wüster (2015): A new species of death adder (Acanthophis: Serpentes: Elapidae) from north-western Australia. Zootaxa 4007: 301–326. available online (PDF)

[Sci-News.com-14] (14 Sep 2015). New Species of Venomous Snake Discovered in Australia.

[ReptileDatabaseHawkei-15] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis hawkei.

[ReptileDatabaseLaevis-16] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis laevis.

[ReptileDatabasePraelongus-17] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis praelongus.

[ReptileDatabasePyrrhus-18] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis pyrrhus.

[ReptileDatabaseRugosus-19] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis rugosus.

[ReptileDatabaseWellsi-20] Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). Acanthophis wellsi.

[:0-21] "Death Adders". University of Melbourne. 2 May 2017. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.

[Etymology-22] "CSL Antivenom Handbook: CSL Death Adder Antivenom". Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 26 May 2013.

[23] Mahony, Stephen (2020). "Common Death Adder". The Australian Museum. Retrieved 9 October 2021.

[Strike-24] Baker, Kevin (4 July 2016). The World's Most Dangerous Animals SUBTITLE. eBookIt.com. ISBN 9781456626976.

[25] Penning, David A.; Sawvel, Baxter; Moon, Brad R. (March 2016). "Debunking the viper's strike: harmless snakes kill a common assumption". Biology Letters. 12 (3): 20160011. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2016.0011. ISSN 1744-9561. PMC 4843225. PMID 26979562.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{short description|Genus of elapid snakes commonly called death adders}}
+{{Short description|Genus of elapid snakes commonly called death adders}}
-{{distinguish|text=the plant genus [[Acanthopsis]]}}
+{{Distinguish|text=the plant genus [[Acanthopsis]]}}
 {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
 {{Use Australian English|date=March 2016}}
@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 }}
-'''''Acanthophis''''' is a [[genus]] of [[Elapidae|elapid]] [[snake]]s. Commonly called ''death adders'', they are native to [[Australia]], [[New Guinea]] and nearby islands, and are among the most [[venomous snake]]s in the world. Despite their common name, they are not adders at all and belong to the [[Elapidae]] family (like [[cobra]]s). The name of the genus derives from the [[Ancient Greek]] {{transl|grc|akanthos}}/{{lang|grc|ἄκανθος}} ('spine') and {{transl|grc|ophis}}/{{lang|grc|ὄφις}} ('snake'), referring to the spine on the death adder's tail.
+'''''Acanthophis''''' is a [[genus]] of [[Elapidae|elapid]] [[snake]]s. Commonly called '''''death adders''''', they are native to [[Australia]], [[New Guinea]] and nearby islands, and are among the most [[venomous snake]]s in the world. Despite their common name, they are not [[List of snakes by common name#A|adders]] at all and belong to the [[Elapidae]] family (like [[cobra]]s). The name of the genus derives from the [[Ancient Greek]] {{transliteration|grc|akanthos}}/{{lang|grc|ἄκανθος}} ('spine') and {{transliteration|grc|ophis}}/{{lang|grc|ὄφις}} ('snake'), referring to the spine on the death adder's tail.
-Seven species are listed by [[Integrated Taxonomic Information System|ITIS]],<ref name=itis>{{ITIS | id=700200 | taxon=''Acanthophis ''| access-date = 10 March 2011}}</ref> though it remains unclear how many [[species]] this genus includes, with figures ranging from 4 to 15 species being quoted.
+Eight species are listed by [[Integrated Taxonomic Information System|ITIS]],<ref name=itis>{{ITIS | id=700200 | taxon=''Acanthophis ''| access-date = 10 March 2011}}</ref> though it remains unclear how many [[species]] this genus includes, with figures ranging from 4 to 15 species being quoted.
 == Taxonomy ==
-French naturalist [[François Marie Daudin]] established the genus ''Acanthophis'' in 1803, with the common death adder (''A. cerastinus'') as its only species.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Daudin |first1=François Marie |title=Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, des reptiles : ouvrage faisant suite à l'Histoire naturelle générale et particulière, composée par Leclerc de Buffon, et rédigée par C.S. Sonnini |date=1802 |publisher=F. Dufart |location=Paris |pages=289-296 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40021346}}</ref>
+French naturalist [[François Marie Daudin]] established the genus ''Acanthophis'' in 1803, with the common death adder (''A. cerastinus'') as its only species.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Daudin |first1=François Marie |title=Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, des reptiles : ouvrage faisant suite à l'Histoire naturelle générale et particulière, composée par Leclerc de Buffon, et rédigée par C.S. Sonnini |date=1802 |volume=97 |publisher=F. Dufart |location=Paris |pages=289–296 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40021346}}</ref>
 Although the death adders resemble vipers of the family [[Viperidae]], they are actually members of the family [[Elapidae]], which includes [[cobra]]s, [[mamba]]s, and [[coral snake]]s.
-It remains unclear how many [[species]] are included in this [[genus]]. Traditionally, only ''A. antarcticus'', ''A. praelongus'' and ''A. pyrrhus'' have been recognized. In 1998 five new species were described (''A. barnetti'', ''A. crotalusei'', ''A. cummingi'', ''A. wellsi'' and ''A. woolfi'')<ref name="Hoser1998">[[Raymond Hoser|Hoser, R.]] (1998): ''Death adders (genus Acanthophis): an overview, including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies.'' Monitor 9(2): 20-30, 33-41. [http://www.smuggled.com/addtax2.htm available online]</ref> and in 2002 an additional three were described (''A. groenveldi'', ''A. macgregori'' and ''A. yuwoni'').<ref name="Hoser2002">Hoser, R. (2002): ''Death Adders (Genus Acanthophis): An Updated overview, including descriptions of 3 New Island species and 2 New Australian subspecies.'' Crocodilian - Journal of the Victorian Association of Amateur Herpetologists, September 2002: 5-11, 16-22, 24-30, front and back covers. [http://www.smuggled.com/addtax3.htm available online]</ref> These were received with scepticism,<ref name="Aplin1999">Aplin, K.P. & S.C. Donnellan (1999): ''An extended description of the Pilbara Death Adder, Acanthophis wellsi Hoser (Serpentes: Elapidae), with notes on the Desert Death Adder, A. pyrrhus Boulenger, and identification of a possible hybrid zone.'' Records of the Western Australian Museum 19: 277-298.</ref><ref name="Wuster2001">[[Wolfgang Wüster|Wüster, W.]], B. Bush, J.S. Keogh, [[Mark O'Shea (herpetologist)|M. O'Shea]] & R. Shine (2001): ''Taxonomic contributions in the "amateur" literature: comments on recent descriptions of new genera and species by Raymond Hoser.'' Litteratura Serpentium 21: 67-79, 86-91. [http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/FWit/LittSerp.pdf available online (PDF)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809042710/http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/FWit/LittSerp.pdf |date=9 August 2007 }}</ref><ref name="Williams2006">Williams, D., W. Wüster & B. Fry (2006): ''The good, the bad and the ugly: Australian snake taxonomists and a history of the taxonomy of Australia's venomous snakes.'' Toxicon 48: 919-930. [http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/Publications/2006_Aussie_taxonomists_Toxicon.pdf available online (PDF)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061225020213/http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/Publications/2006_Aussie_taxonomists_Toxicon.pdf |date=25 December 2006 }}</ref> and only ''A. wellsi'', where an extended description has been published,<ref name="Aplin1999"/> has been widely recognized.<ref name=itis/><ref name=ReptileDatabaseGenus>Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). ''[http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/search.php?&genus=Acanthophis&submit=Search Acanthophis].''</ref> Further confusion exists over the death adders from [[Papua New Guinea]] and [[Indonesia]]. They have variously been placed in ''A. antarcticus'' or ''A. praelongus''. In 2005 it was shown that neither is appropriate, and the New Guinea death adders fall into two main [[clade]]s:<ref name="Wuster2005"/> The rather smooth-scaled ''A. laevis'' [[species complex|complex]] (including death adders from [[Seram Island|Seram]]), and the rough-scaled ''A. rugosus'' complex. The latter can be divided into two sub-clades; one, ''A. rugosus [[sensu stricto]]'', from southern [[New Guinea]], and a second, ''A. hawkei'', from northern [[Queensland]] and the [[Northern Territory]] in Australia. It is likely some of these include more than one species, as populations included in e.g. ''A. laevis'' show extensive variation in both pattern and [[Scale (anatomy)|scalation]].<ref name="Wuster2005">{{cite journal | last=Wüster | first= Wolfgang | first2=  | last2=Dumbrell| first3=  C. | last3=Hay | first4=  C.E. | last4=Pook| first5=  D.J. | last5=Williams| first6=  B.G. | last6=Fry | year=2005|title=Snakes across the Strait: Trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: ''Acanthophis'', ''Oxyuranus'' and ''Pseudechis'').| journal= Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=34| issue=1 | pages= 1–14 | doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018 | url=http://www.kingsnake.com/aho/MPE_34_1-14.pdf}}</ref>
+It remains unclear how many [[species]] are included in this [[genus]]. Traditionally, only ''A. antarcticus'', ''A. praelongus'' and ''A. pyrrhus'' have been recognised. In 1985, Wells  & Wellington proposed four new species – ''A. armstrongi'', ''A. hawkei'', ''A. lancasteri'', and ''A. schistos'' – but these were not widely adopted at the time.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ellis |first1=Ryan J. |last2=Kaiser |first2=Hinrich |last3=Maddock |first3=Simon T. |last4=Doughty |first4=Paul |last5=Wüster |first5=Wolfgang |date=29 June 2021 |title=An evaluation of the nomina for death adders (Acanthophis Daudin, 1803) proposed by Wells & Wellington (1985), and confirmation of A. cryptamydros Maddock et al., 2015 as the valid name for the Kimberley death adder |journal=Zootaxa |language=en |volume=4995 |issue=1 |pages=161–172 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.4995.1.9 |issn=1175-5334 |pmid=34186811 |doi-access=free}} [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352815651_An_evaluation_of_the_nomina_for_death_adders_Acanthophis_Daudin_1803_proposed_by_Wells_Wellington_1985_and_confirmation_of_A_cryptamydros_Maddock_et_al_2015_as_the_valid_name_for_the_Kimberley_death_a]</ref> In 1998 five new species were described (''A. barnetti'', ''A. crotalusei'', ''A. cummingi'', ''A. wellsi'' and ''A. woolfi'')<ref name="Hoser1998">[[Raymond Hoser|Hoser, R.]] (1998): ''Death adders (genus Acanthophis): an overview, including descriptions of five new species and one subspecies.'' Monitor 9(2): 20-30, 33-41. [http://www.smuggled.com/addtax2.htm available online]</ref> and in 2002 an additional three were described (''A. groenveldi'', ''A. macgregori'' and ''A. yuwoni'').<ref name="Hoser2002">Hoser, R. (2002): ''Death Adders (Genus Acanthophis): An Updated overview, including descriptions of 3 New Island species and 2 New Australian subspecies.'' Crocodilian - Journal of the Victorian Association of Amateur Herpetologists, September 2002: 5-11, 16-22, 24-30, front and back covers. [http://www.smuggled.com/addtax3.htm available online]</ref> These were received with scepticism,<ref name="Aplin1999">Aplin, K.P. & S.C. Donnellan (1999): ''An extended description of the Pilbara Death Adder, Acanthophis wellsi Hoser (Serpentes: Elapidae), with notes on the Desert Death Adder, A. pyrrhus Boulenger, and identification of a possible hybrid zone.'' Records of the Western Australian Museum 19: 277-298.</ref><ref name="Wuster2001">[[Wolfgang Wüster|Wüster, W.]], B. Bush, J.S. Keogh, [[Mark O'Shea (herpetologist)|M. O'Shea]] & R. Shine (2001): ''Taxonomic contributions in the "amateur" literature: comments on recent descriptions of new genera and species by Raymond Hoser.'' Litteratura Serpentium 21: 67-79, 86-91. [http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/FWit/LittSerp.pdf available online (PDF)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809042710/http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/FWit/LittSerp.pdf |date=9 August 2007 }}</ref><ref name="Williams2006">Williams, D., W. Wüster & B. Fry (2006): ''The good, the bad and the ugly: Australian snake taxonomists and a history of the taxonomy of Australia's venomous snakes.'' Toxicon 48: 919-930. [http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/Publications/2006_Aussie_taxonomists_Toxicon.pdf available online (PDF)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061225020213/http://biology.bangor.ac.uk/~bss166/Publications/2006_Aussie_taxonomists_Toxicon.pdf |date=25 December 2006 }}</ref> and only ''A. wellsi'', where an extended description has been published,<ref name="Aplin1999"/> has been widely recognised.<ref name=itis/><ref name=ReptileDatabaseGenus>Reptile Database (version 10 March 2011). ''[http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/search.php?&genus=Acanthophis&submit=Search Acanthophis].''</ref> Further confusion exists over the death adders from [[Papua New Guinea]] and [[Indonesia]]. They have variously been placed in ''A. antarcticus'' or ''A. praelongus''. In 2005 it was shown that neither is appropriate, and the New Guinea death adders fall into two main [[clade]]s:<ref name="Wuster2005"/> The rather smooth-scaled ''A. laevis'' [[species complex|complex]] (including death adders from [[Seram Island|Seram]]), and the rough-scaled ''A. rugosus'' complex. The latter can be divided into two sub-clades; one, ''A. rugosus [[sensu stricto]]'', from southern [[New Guinea]], and a second, ''A. hawkei'', from northern [[Queensland]] and the [[Northern Territory]] in Australia. It is likely some of these include more than one species, as populations included in e.g. ''A. laevis'' show extensive variation in both pattern and [[Scale (anatomy)|scalation]].<ref name="Wuster2005">{{cite journal | last1=Wüster | first1= Wolfgang | last2=Dumbrell| first3=  C. | last3=Hay | first4=  C.E. | last4=Pook| first5=  D.J. | last5=Williams| first6=  B.G. | last6=Fry | year=2005|title=Snakes across the Strait: Trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: ''Acanthophis'', ''Oxyuranus'' and ''Pseudechis'').| journal= Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=34| issue=1 | pages= 1–14 | doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018 | pmid= 15579378 | url=http://www.kingsnake.com/aho/MPE_34_1-14.pdf}}</ref>
 === Species ===
@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 |Common death adder
 |[[Australia]]<ref name="Wuster2005"/>
-|-
-|
-|''[[Acanthophis ceramensis|A. ceramensis]]''
-|<small>[[Albert Günther]], 1863</small>
-|align="center"|0<ref name=ReptileDat.>(14 Sep 2015). ''[http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Acanthophis&species=ceramensis&search_param=%28%28search%3D%27Acanthophis%27%29%29 Acanthophis ceramensis].''</ref>
-|Günther's death adder
-|[[Indonesia]] ([[Seram]], [[Tanimbar]])<ref name="ReptileDat."/>
 |-
 |
 |''[[Acanthophis cryptamydros|A. cryptamydros]]''
-|<small>Maddock, Ellis, Doughty, Smith & Wüster, 2015</small>
+|<small>[[species:Simon T. Maddock|Maddock]], [[species:Ryan J. Ellis|Ellis]], [[species:Paul Doughty|Doughty]], [[species:Lawrence A. Smith|L.A. Smith]] & [[species:Wolfgang Wüster|Wüster]], 2015</small>
 |align="center"|0<ref name="Maddock2015">Maddock, S. T., R. J. Ellis, P. Dougthy, L. A. Smith & [[Wolfgang Wüster|W. Wüster]] (2015): ''A new species of death adder (Acanthophis: Serpentes: Elapidae) from north-western Australia.'' Zootaxa 4007: 301–326. [http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2015/f/zt04007p326.pdf available online (PDF)]</ref>
 |Kimberley death adder
@@ Line 82: / Line 75: @@
 |Australia<ref name=ReptileDatabasePyrrhus/>
 |-
+|[[File:Acanthophis rugosus 188048029 (cropped).jpg|150px]]
-|
 |''[[Acanthophis rugosus|A. rugosus]]''
 |<small>[[Arthur Loveridge|Loveridge]], 1948</small>
@@ Line 96: / Line 89: @@
 |Australia<ref name=ReptileDatabaseWellsi/>
 |}
-<nowiki>*</nowiki> Not including the [[Nominotypical subspecies|nominate subspecies]].<br>
+<nowiki>*</nowiki> Not including the [[Nominotypical subspecies|nominate subspecies]].<br />
 <sup>T</sup>[[Type species]].
@@ Line 102: / Line 95: @@
 [[File:Death-Adder.jpg|thumb|left|Death Adder. Photo taken at Brisbane Forest Park, [[Brisbane]], [[Queensland]], Australia]]
-Death adders are very [[Viperidae|viper]]-like in appearance, having a short, robust body, [[triangle|triangular]] shaped [[head (anatomy)|heads]], small subocular [[scale (zoology)|scale]]s, many small scales on the top of the head, and elevated [[supraocular scales]]. Dorsal scales may be smooth or [[Keeled scales|keeled]]. Body patterning is generally crossbanding, and they have vertically elliptical [[pupil]]s.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Death Adders|url=https://biomedicalsciences.unimelb.edu.au/departments/department-of-biochemistry-and-pharmacology/engage/avru/discover/snakes/death-adders|url-status=live|access-date=10 October 2021|website=University of Melbourne|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331134858/https://biomedicalsciences.unimelb.edu.au/departments/department-of-biochemistry-and-pharmacology/engage/avru/discover/snakes/death-adders |archive-date=31 March 2021 }}</ref> Their fangs are also longer and more mobile than for most other elapids, although still far from the size seen in some of the true vipers. Despite their name, they are not related to [[Vipera berus|adders]], which are members of the family [[Viperidae]], and their similar appearance is due to [[convergent evolution]].
+Death adders are very [[Viperidae|viper]]-like in appearance, having a short, robust body, [[triangle|triangular]] shaped [[head (anatomy)|heads]], small subocular [[scale (zoology)|scale]]s, many small scales on the top of the head, and elevated [[supraocular scales]]. Dorsal scales may be smooth or [[Keeled scales|keeled]]. Body patterning is generally crossbanding, and they have vertically elliptical [[pupil]]s.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Death Adders|url=https://biomedicalsciences.unimelb.edu.au/departments/department-of-biochemistry-and-pharmacology/engage/avru/discover/snakes/death-adders|url-status=live|access-date=10 October 2021|website=University of Melbourne|date=2 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331134858/https://biomedicalsciences.unimelb.edu.au/departments/department-of-biochemistry-and-pharmacology/engage/avru/discover/snakes/death-adders |archive-date=31 March 2021 }}</ref> Their fangs are also longer and more mobile than for most other elapids, although still far from the size seen in some of the true vipers. Despite their name, they are not related to [[Vipera berus|adders]], which are members of the family [[Viperidae]], and their similar appearance is due to [[convergent evolution]].
 They normally take 2–3 years to reach adult size. Females are generally slightly larger than the males. They can also be easily distinguished from other Australian snakes because of a small, worm like lure on the end of their tail, which is used to attract prey. Most have large bands around their bodies, though the colour itself is variable, depending on their locality. Colours are usually black, grey or red and yellow, but also include brown and greenish-grey.
 Death adders are [[Ovoviviparity|ovoviviparous]] with the embryos developing in membranous sacs inside the female who will give birth to litters of 8 to 30 live neonates.<ref name=":0" />
 == Origin of name ==
-Death adders were originally called 'deaf adders' by early settlers of Australia.<ref name='Etymology'>{{Cite web |url=http://www.toxinology.com/generic_static_files/cslavh_antivenom_deathader.html |title=CSL Antivenom Handbook: CSL Death Adder Antivenom |access-date=26 May 2013 |archive-date=12 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012020951/http://www.toxinology.com/generic_static_files/cslavh_Antivenom_deathader.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
+Early settlers of Australia called them "deaf adders".<ref name='Etymology'>{{Cite web |url=http://www.toxinology.com/generic_static_files/cslavh_antivenom_deathader.html |title=CSL Antivenom Handbook: CSL Death Adder Antivenom |access-date=26 May 2013 |archive-date=12 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012020951/http://www.toxinology.com/generic_static_files/cslavh_Antivenom_deathader.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> How "deaf" became "death" is not recorded.
-Unlike other snakes that tend to run away from human disturbance, the death adder is inclined to hold its ground, leading to the notion that the death adder cannot hear. However, death adders, like other snakes, perceive ground vibrations.
+Unlike other snakes that tend to flee from human disturbance, the death adder is inclined to hold its ground, leading to the notion that the death adder cannot hear. However, death adders, like other snakes, perceive ground vibrations.
 == Hunting ==
-Unlike most snakes, death adders do not actively hunt, but rather lie in ambush and draw their prey to them.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mahony|first=Stephen|date=2020|title=Common Death Adder|url=https://australian.museum/learn/animals/reptiles/common-death-adder/australian.museum/learn/animals/reptiles/common-death-adder/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-10-09|website=The Australian Museum|language=en}}</ref> When hungry, death adders bury themselves among the [[substrate (biology)|substrate]]. This may be leaf litter, soil or sand, depending on their environment. The only part of themselves they expose are their head and their tail, both generally very well camouflaged. The end of the tail is used for [[caudal luring]] and when wiggled, it is easily mistaken for a grub or worm. When the snake's prey attempts to seize it, the death adder strikes. Although it has been claimed to have the quickest strike of any snake in the world,<ref name="Strike">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kF2eDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT84|title=The World's Most Dangerous Animals SUBTITLE|last=Baker|first=Kevin|date=2016-07-04|publisher=eBookIt.com|isbn=9781456626976|language=en}}</ref> this topic has not been well enough studied to make reliable comparisons.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Penning|first1=David A.|last2=Sawvel|first2=Baxter|last3=Moon|first3=Brad R.|date=March 2016|title=Debunking the viper's strike: harmless snakes kill a common assumption|journal=Biology Letters|volume=12|issue=3|pages=20160011|doi=10.1098/rsbl.2016.0011|issn=1744-9561|pmc=4843225|pmid=26979562}}</ref> They commonly feed on local geckos such as the [[Dubious dtella]].
+Unlike most snakes, death adders do not actively hunt, but rather lie in ambush and draw their prey to them.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mahony|first=Stephen|date=2020|title=Common Death Adder|url=https://australian.museum/learn/animals/reptiles/common-death-adder/|access-date=2021-10-09|website=The Australian Museum|language=en}}</ref> When hungry, death adders bury themselves among the [[substrate (biology)|substrate]]. This may be [[leaf litter]], soil or sand, depending on their environment. The only part of themselves they expose are their head and their tail, both generally very well camouflaged. The end of the tail is used for [[caudal luring]] and when wiggled, it is easily mistaken for a grub or worm. When the snake's prey attempts to seize it, the death adder strikes. Although it has been claimed to have the quickest strike of any snake in the world,<ref name="Strike">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kF2eDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT84|title=The World's Most Dangerous Animals SUBTITLE|last=Baker|first=Kevin|date=2016-07-04|publisher=eBookIt.com|isbn=9781456626976|language=en}}</ref> this topic has not been well enough studied to make reliable comparisons.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Penning|first1=David A.|last2=Sawvel|first2=Baxter|last3=Moon|first3=Brad R.|date=March 2016|title=Debunking the viper's strike: harmless snakes kill a common assumption|journal=Biology Letters|volume=12|issue=3|pages=20160011|doi=10.1098/rsbl.2016.0011|issn=1744-9561|pmc=4843225|pmid=26979562}}</ref> They commonly feed on local geckos such as the [[Dubious dtella]].
 == Venom ==
@@ Line 127: / Line 121: @@
 ==Further reading==
-*[[François Marie Daudin|Daudin FM]]. 1803. ''Histoire Naturelle, Générale et Particulière des Reptiles; Ouvrage faisant suite aux Œuvres de Leclerc de Buffon, et partie du Cours complet d'Histoire naturelle rédigé par C.S. Sonnini, membre de plusieurs Sociétés savantes. Tome Cinquième'' [Volume 5]. Paris: F. Dufart. 365 pp. (''Acantophis'', new genus, pp. 287–288). (in French).
+*[[François Marie Daudin|Daudin FM]] (1803). ''Histoire Naturelle, Générale et Particulière des Reptiles; Ouvrage faisant suite aux Œuvres de Leclerc de Buffon, et partie du Cours complet d'Histoire naturelle rédigé par C.S. Sonnini, membre de plusieurs Sociétés savantes. Tome Cinquième'' [Volume 5]. Paris: F. Dufart. 365 pp. (''Acantophis'', new genus, pp. 287–288). (in French).
 ==External links==
-*{{commons category-inline|Acanthophis|''Acanthophis''}}
+*{{Commons category-inline|Acanthophis|''Acanthophis''}}
 *{{Wikispecies-inline|Acanthophis|''Acanthophis''}}
 *A severe case of stomatitis (canker or mouthrot) in a Death Adder (''Acanthophis antarcticus'') associated with a reovirus infection. Boydii (Autumn 2004):16-17. [http://www.smuggled.com/AddCan1.htm Treatment]
@@ Line 137: / Line 131: @@
 {{Taxonbar|from=Q195567}}
+{{Authority control}}
 [[Category:Acanthophis| ]]