Battling red-bellied black snakes
November 10, 2016
These red-bellied black snakes (Pseudechis porphyriacus) engage in combat for the right to mate in Jarvis bay, NSW.
Image credit: Christopher Grounds
A hormone-fuelled fight between two male red-bellied black snakes.
This week’s reader photo was taken by Christopher Grounds in Booderee National Park, Jervis Bay, NSW.
“At first it appeared that the red-bellied black snakes were mating, but continuing observation suggested that the behaviour was aggressive and combatant. The snakes continuously entwined, reared, lunged and hit at each other across the head and neck in a display lasting at least 15 minutes,” says Christopher.
“Checks with Park staff and the internet confirmed it was likely to be two males in a hormone flush in the warming season that had come across each other in the search for a female. This all played out on the side of a dirt access road.”
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