Cacophis

Species of Cacophis are distributed along eastern Australia.[1]

The four species in the genus Cacophis are all venomous, but not dangerous to people.

Snakes of the genus Cacophis inhabit a variety of forest types, from woodland to rainforest.

Cacophis species are generally nocturnal and feed on lizards and reptile eggs.

All species of Cacophis have a distinct "crown" pattern on the head, which gives them their common names.

The following four species are recognized as being valid.[2]

• Cacophis churchilli Wells & Wellington, 1985 – northern dwarf crowned snake
• Cacophis harriettae Krefft, 1869 – white-crowned snake
• Cacophis krefftii Günther, 1863 – dwarf crowned snake
• Cacophis squamulosus (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) – golden-crowned snake

Nota bene: In the above list, a binomial authority in parentheses indicate that the species was originally described in a genus other than Cacophis.

• Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN 978-0643100350.
• Günther A (1863). "Third Account of new Species of Snakes in the Collection of the British Museum". Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Third Series 12: 348-365 + Plates V & VI. (Cacophis, new genus, p. 361).
• Swan, Gerry (1995). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Australia. Sydney: New Holland. 144 pp. ISBN 1-85368-585-2.
• Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. ISBN 978-1921517280.