Bluff Downs giant python
The Bluff Downs giant python (Liasis dubudingala) is an extinct species of snake from Queensland, Australia, that lived during the Early Pliocene.[1]
| Bluff Downs giant python Temporal range: Early Pliocene | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Pythonidae |
| Genus: | Liasis |
| Species: | L. dubudingala |
| Binomial name | |
| Liasis dubudingala Scanlon and Mackness, 2002 | |
The Bluff Downs giant python hunted mammals, birds and reptiles in the woodlands and vine thickets bordering Australian watercourses during Pliocene times. Its nearest living relative is the olive python (Liasis olivacea).
Size
The Bluff Downs giant python is estimated to have grown to 10 m (33 ft), making it at least a metre longer than the world's two longest living snakes - the anaconda of South America and the reticulated python of Asia.
Fossils
Fossilised vertebrae, teeth and rib fragments of the Bluff Downs python were found in 1992 at Bluff Downs in northeastern Queensland.
References
- Scanlon, J. D.; MacKness, B. S. (2001). "A new giant python from the Pliocene Bluff Downs Local Fauna of northeastern Queensland". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 25 (4): 425. doi:10.1080/03115510108619232. S2CID 85185368.
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