"We assume that they can adapt very quickly and they are resilient and they can make use of anywhere, but what we are really finding is that is not the case,"
Australian National University (ANU) Associate Professor Gavin Smith has been studying the relocation of eastern brown snakes (Pseudonaja textilis) in Australia after starting the Canberra Snake Tracking Project in 2021. The CSTP is tasked to investigate how translocating snakes caught in urban areas are affecting their well being.
The data that Smith and his project have collected points to challenging times for the translocated snakes.
“We assume that they can adapt very quickly and they are resilient and they can make use of anywhere, but what we are really finding is that is not the case,” Dr. Smith told ABC News Australia.
The project tracked snakes that were caught in homes and in backyards in Canberra and then relocated to reserves. The reserves would have presumably been a better place for the snakes to live, away from human interaction. What they found was that these healthy snakes that were translocated away from their home ranges exhibited erratic behavior, lost significant weight, and were exposed to risks from predators. They were essentially struggling to hunt as effectively as they did prior to the translocation.
One notable subject was a snake named Titan, who was captured in a Canberra suburb. Titan was translocated to the Ginninderry Conservation Corridor. He then, over the course of 100 days, traveled 5 kilometers into and through a new suburb developments and back to the general area where he was captured. Titan was the only snake in the study group that found his way back to the original location where he was captured. The data is currently being compiled and a research paper discussing the findings is expected to be released later in 2025.
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Eastern Brown Snake Information
The Eastern brown snake is considered the second most venomous snake in the world. The majority of snake bite deaths that occur in Australia are from this snake or its cousin, the western brown snake. The Eastern brown snake can be found throughout Australia and into New Guinea. The Eastern brown snake grows to about five to six feet in length and its venom produces hemotoxic and neurotoxic symptoms with immediate pain and swelling of the lymph nodes.
