Pseudechis

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Subordo: Serpentes
Infraordo: Caenophidia
Superfamilia: Elapoidea

Familia: Elapidae
Subfamilia: Hydrophiinae
Genus: Pseudechis
Species: P. australis – P. butleri – P. colletti – P. guttatus – P. pailsei – P. papuanus – P. porphyriacus – P. rossignolii – P. weigeli
Name

Pseudechis Wagler, 1830
References
Additional references

Kuch, U., Keogh, J.S., Weigel, J., Smith, L.A. & Mebs, D. 2005. Phylogeography of Australia's king brown snake (Pseudechis australis) reveals Pliocene divergence and Pleistocene dispersal of a top predator. Naturwissenschaften 92: 121–127. DOI: 10.1007/s00114-004-0602-0 Paywall Reference page.
Wüster, W., Dumbrell, A.J., Hay, C., Pook, C.E., Williams, D.J. & Fry, B.G. 2005. Snakes across the Strait: trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus, and Pseudechis). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 34(1): 1–14. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018 Paywall Reference page.
Maddock, S.T., Childerstone, A., Grieg-Fry, B., Williams, D.J., Barlow, A. & Wüster, W. 2017. Multi-locus phylogeny and species delimitation of Australo-Papuan blacksnakes (Pseudechis Wagler, 1830: Elapidae: Serpentes). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 107: 48–55. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2016.09.005 Paywall Reference page.

Vernacular names
English: Black Snakes

Pseudechis is a genus of venomous snakes in the family Elapidae. It contains the group of elapid species commonly referred to as the black snakes. Species of Pseudechis are found in every Australian state with the exception of Tasmania, and some species are found in Papua New Guinea. They inhabit a variety of habitat types, from arid areas to swampland. All species are dangerous (Pseudechis signifying "like a viper", Greek echis) and can inflict a potentially lethal bite. Most snakes in this genus reach about 2 m (6.6 ft) in total length (including tail), and vary in colour. Some species are brown, whereas others are black. The most recognisable and widespread species in the genus are the red-bellied black snake (P. porphyriacus) and the mulga snake (king brown) (P. australis). These snakes feed on lizards, frogs, birds, small mammals, and even other snakes. All species of Pseudechis lay eggs with the exception of the red-bellied black snake P. porphyriacus which is viviparous. The genus Pailsus is a synonym of Pseudechis, and more work is needed to understand species limits among the smaller species of the group.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
Taxonomy

The genus was established in 1860 by Johann Wagler, separating a species previously described by George Shaw in the new combination Pseudechis porphyriacus as a monotypic genus. The systematic revision of the elapid family by George Albert Boulenger in 1896 allied the descriptions of eight species, and by 1933 the number totalled taxa assigned to the genus. A revision of Pseudechis by Roy D. Mackay in 1955 placed many of these descriptions in synonymy,[8] reducing the number of recognised species to five. The examination of a large series of specimens of the king brown Pseudechis australis was undertaken by Laurie Smith, recognising clinal variability within the population and separating a form with significant distinctions in morphology as a sixth species of the genus, Pseudechis butleri.[9][2]

The taxonomy of snakes of the genus Pseudechis is unsettled, with at least one species undescribed; several recent phylogenetic studies have provided evidence of the presence of species beyond the six recognised in most books.[1][2][3][5][6][10][11]

Scientific Name	Common Name	Distribution
Pseudechis australis (Gray, 1842)	king brown snake, mulga snake	northern, western, and Central Australia
Pseudechis butleri L.A. Smith, 1982	Butler's black snake, Butler's snake, spotted mulga snake	Western Australia
Pseudechis colletti Boulenger, 1902	Collett's black snake, Collett's cobra, Collett's snake, Down's tiger snake	Australia
Pseudechis guttatus De Vis, 1905	blue-bellied black snake, spotted black snake	south-eastern Queensland and northern New South Wales.
Pseudechis pailsei (Hoser, 1998)	eastern dwarf mulga snake, eastern pygmy mulga snake, false king brown snake	Australia
Pseudechis papuanus W. Peters & Doria, 1878	Papuan black snake	New Guinea
Pseudechis porphyriacus (Shaw, 1794)	Australian black snake, common black snake, red-bellied black snake, redbelly	Australia
Pseudechis rossignolii (Hoser, 2000)	Papuan pygmy mulga snake	New Guinea
Pseudechis weigeli (Wells & Wellington, 1987)	pygmy king brown snake, pygmy mulga snake	Australia

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Pseudechis.
References

Maddock, Simon T.; Childerstone, Aaron; Fry, Bryan Grieg; Williams, David J.; Barlow, Axel; Wüster, Wolfgang (2017-02-01). "Multi-locus phylogeny and species delimitation of Australo-Papuan blacksnakes (Pseudechis Wagler, 1830: Elapidae: Serpentes)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 107: 48–55. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.09.005. PMID 27637992.
"Horner, Paul (June 2012). "Genus Pseudechis Wagler, 1830". Australian Faunal Directory. Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy.
Swan, Gerry (1995). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Australia. Sydney: New Holland. ISBN 1-85368-585-2.
Pseudechis australis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database
Kuch, U.; Keogh, J.S.; Weigel, J.; Smith, L.A.; Mebs, D. (2005). "Phylogeography of Australia's king brown snake (Pseudechis australis) reveals Pliocene divergence and Pleistocene dispersal of a top predator". Naturwissenschaften. 92 (3): 121–127. Bibcode:2005NW.....92..121K. doi:10.1007/s00114-004-0602-0. PMID 15688185.
Wüster W, Dumbrell AJ, Hay C, Pook CE, Williams DJ, Fry BG (2005). "Snakes across the Strait: Trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus and Pseudechis)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 34 (1): 1–14. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.018. PMID 15579378. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-02-03. "superseding; Wüster, W., et al. Phylogeny and classification of Australo-Papuan black snakes and mulga snakes: comments on genus Pailsus Hoser (1998)" {{cite journal}}: External link in |quote= (help)
Wüster W, Golay P, Warrell DA (August 1999). "Synopsis of recent developments in venomous snake systematics, No. 3" (PDF). Toxicon. 37 (8): 1123–9. doi:10.1016/S0041-0101(98)00248-7. PMID 10400296. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-07-21.
Mackay, R.D. (1955). "A revision of the genus Pseudechis". Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. 74 (1953–54): 15–23.
Mengden, G.A.; Shine, R.; Moritz, C. (1986). "Phylogenetic Relationships within the Australasian Venomous Snakes of the Genus Pseudechis". Herpetologica. 42 (2): 215–229. ISSN 0018-0831. JSTOR 3892390.
"Reptiles / Squamata / Elapidae / Pseudechis ". Australian Reptile Online Database. Retrieved 16 May 2017.

Pseudechis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database