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.

Dubious Dtella. Photo by Tim Hackwood.

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.

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.

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!

Amethystine Python (Morelia kinghorni) by Tim Hackwood.

With the next observation night planned to occur during the wet-season, who knows what may be uncovered residing in one of the world’s oldest continually surviving tropical rainforests. There is so much to see and discover, day or night in the ancient rainforest, so join us an see an abundance of wildlife

Australian Tropical rainforest information and Images supplied by Skyrail Environmental Ranger & Wildlife photographer Tim Hackwood.