Arafura File Snake Acrochordus arafurae
Description
Acrochordus arafurae, known by the common names Arafura file snake, elephant trunk snake, and wrinkle file snake, is an aquatic snake species found in northern Australia and New Guinea. No subspecies are currently recognized.[3]
This snake was first described by Samuel Booker McDowell in 1979[4][5]
Adults grown to 8.25 ft (2.5 m) in length.[6] They have very loose skin and are known to prey on large fish, such as eel-tailed catfish. Females are usually larger than males and they have been known to give birth to up to 17 young. The skin is used to make drums in New Guinea.
Arafura file snakes are often hunted by indigenous peoples of Northern Australia.
In the Kunwinjku language of West Arnhem Land, the snakes are known as kedjebe (or bekka in Eastern dialects),[7] while in the Yolŋu language of East Arnhem Land they are called djaykuŋ,[8] among other names.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Acrochordus arafurae", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0. Content may have been omitted from the original, but no content has been changed or extended.
Common Names
No common names available.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Acrochordidae
Genus: Acrochordus
Species: Arafura File Snake Acrochordus arafurae