by Janne Torkkola | Sep 12, 2018 | Brisbane Snake, News
The first day of spring gave us a beautiful big eastern brown snake, our second for the season. This lovely creature had been seen popping in and out of a hide in the rock retaining wall for a week or so prior to this catch, and we had been visiting the...
by Janne Torkkola | Aug 10, 2018 | News, Snakes
With over a thousand species of reptile in Australia described since the arrival of British colonialists in 1788 one might suspect the task of collating an inventory of the country’s snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles would already be complete (1,2). Not...
by Janne Torkkola | May 30, 2018 | News, Snake Catcher, Snakes
“I hate and fear snakes, because if you look into the eyes of any snake you will see that it knows all and more of the mystery of man’s fall, and that it feels all the contempt that the Devil felt when Adam was evicted from Eden.” – Rudyard Kipling, The Return Of...
by Janne Torkkola | Feb 16, 2018 | News
The Eastern Brown Snake is often thought of as one of the scariest creatures in Australia, land of the scary creatures. Since childhood we’ve all heard tales about people being chased by these animals, obviously bent on our destruction. However, what many of...
by Janne Torkkola | Jan 30, 2018 | News
As January comes to a close, here at Snake Out Brisbane we’re still celebrating how we started! The first six days of the year gave us six elapids in a row. An eastern brown snake (Pseudonaja textilis) on the first, a red-bellied black snake (Pseudechis...
by Janne Torkkola | Mar 25, 2017 | News, Uncategorized
Snakes on the Brain. Essay 6. Riches from the Dust: How Australia’s Depleted Soils Promote Diverse Reptile Communities “Australia is, perhaps surprisingly with our outdoorsy reputation, a difficult landscape for agriculture. . . Though our national anthem sings...
by Janne Torkkola | Aug 18, 2016 | Brisbane Snake, News
A Brief History of Australian Snakes – Part 2. The Rise of True Serpents Part 1. Ancient History can be found here. Imagine yourself walking through an open European woodland on a summer’s evening. It’s been a warm day, the sun is setting, and its at...
by Janne Torkkola | Aug 18, 2016 | Brisbane Snake, News
A Brief History of Australian Snakes – Part 1. Ancient History “Science is not, despite how it is often portrayed, about absolute truths. It is about developing and understanding of the world, making predictions, and then testing these predictions.”...
by Janne Torkkola | Aug 18, 2016 | Brisbane Snake, News, Snakes
Brown Snake Blues Despite their fearsome reputation, there are a lot of us folk in the reptile and wildlife fields who find the group of animals known as Brown Snakes (Genus Pseudonaja) to be an enigmatic, fascinating and, dare I say, beautiful bunch of animals....
by Janne Torkkola | Aug 18, 2016 | News, Snakes
Snakes on the Brain: Essays on Snakes, Science, and Society. Essay 2. Hide and Sea Snakes: The Rediscovery of Two Potentially Extinct Species in WA Snakes on the Brain: Essays on Snakes, Science and Society #2 I often wonder what exactly about snakes makes them such...
