Taipan process on the arch of the palate, which Kinghorn noted separated the genus from all other elapids. The three known species are: the coastal taipan ("Oxyuranus scutellatus"), the inland taipan ("Oxyuranus microlepidotus"), and a recently discovered third species, the Central Ranges taipan ("Oxyuranus temporalis"). The coastal taipan has two subspecies: the coastal taipan ("O. s. scutellatus"), found along the northeastern coast of Queensland, and the Papuan taipan ("O. s. canni"), found on the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. A 2016 genetic analysis showed that the speckled brown snake was an early offshoot of a lineage giving rise to the
Inland taipan the prey with a series of rapid, accurate strikes. It is known to deliver up to eight venomous bites in a single attack, often snapping its jaws fiercely several times to inflict multiple punctures in the same attack. Its more risky attack strategy entails holding its prey with its body and biting it repeatedly. This injects the extremely toxic venom deep into the prey. The venom acts so rapidly that its prey does not have time to fight back. In captivity it may also eat day-old chicks. Inland taipan produce clutches of between one and two dozen eggs. The eggs