There’s a new snake that has been found in the isolated Nicobar Islands, India. Although it’s not too close to Australia, this snake species has been named in honour of Australia’s most famous wildlife conservationist, Steve Irwin.
An adult female Lycodon Irwini (Credit: Girish Choure)
This snake is part of the wolf snake family and has been taxonomically classified as Lycodon Irwini. It’s non-venomous, black in colour and can grow up to a metre in length. Currently, this snake appears to be endemic only to a tiny part of the world, Great Nicobar Island, which is located in the Bay of Bengal. It was first discovered this year by researchers R. S. Naveen, S. R. Chandramouli, Zeeshan A. Mirza and Girish Choure.
But, would you believe that this is not the first animal to be named ‘Irwin’?
Other animals that are named after Steve Irwin
Apart from Lycodon Irwini, three other species are named in honour of The Crocodile Hunter. A turtle, a tiny snail, and a blood parasite (ew!) have all been named with the ‘Irwini’ moniker.
1. Irwin’s turtle
Elseya irwini, or Irwin’s turtle, is the most famous of the Irwin-named species. It is a rare freshwater turtle species that is endemic to a small region in northern Queensland. This turtle is a little different from other Irwini species, as it was originally found because of Steve Irwin.
In 1990, Steve Irwin and his father, naturalist Bob Irwin, actually caught a female specimen of this turtle in the Burdekin River. After sending pictures to turtle expert John Cann, it was labelled a new species and named Elseya irwini.
Since then, the conservation efforts to protect this turtle species have been largely supported by the Irwin family and the Australia Zoo. They are currently running a breeding program at the zoo, and there is the option to adopt an Irwin turtle to further support the cause.
Elseya irwini turtles are quite different from the regular turtle, as they breathe out of gill-like structures in their cloaca, which is why their other nickname is a ‘bum-breather’.
2. The Crikey snail
One of the world’s slowest-moving creatures, a tiny snail, was named Crikey Steveirwini in honour of Steve Irwin. Queensland Museum scientist, Dr John Stanisic or ‘The Snail Whisperer’, named this rare species after Irwin in 2009. This tree snail can only be found in three locations in far north Queensland, at high altitudes above 1000m.
A colourful snail with bands of ‘creamy yellow, orange-brown and chocolate’, it looks to be very similar to a khaki colour from far away, which is what inspired Dr John Stanisic in the first place. He stated to the ABC at the time, “It was the khaki colour that immediately drew the connection to the late Crocodile Hunter”.
3. The koala blood parasite
Lastly, there’s a more sinister species that carries the Irwin name. Trypanosoma irwini is a blood parasite of koalas and was first discovered by Linda M. McInnes and her peers in 2009. While there’s not much known about this parasite, it is currently only found to infect koalas.
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Writer
Rachel Iorfino
Senior content producer
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