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LOCAL OBSERVATIONS 2008 - March
Saturday 29th March 2008
Conditions: Sunny, slight wind, blue skies.
Temperature : around 16 C
Time of observations: 12h00 to 15h30It seemed like a rare herping friendly day in this torrid month of March, the last few weeks have been nothing but wind and some rain, so I jumped at this opportunity, and it started out quite slow, I turned over some junk at a garden and found the first herptile - a Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis), it was a female, I searched some more with no luck, so I carried onto the next location, my Malpolon hot spot, I saw one specimen, which I had surely caught and photographed before, it retreated into it's den before I could catch it.
I then headed to the spot where I found 2 Ladder snakes in 2007, no luck there, and I started to get thirsty and tired. On the way home I took the river dirt track, and finding a Viperine snake (Natrix maura). Cycling back towards the village I had one last location, the village gardens - many people were about so I couldn't have a good look and the herps must have been bothered if there were any by this human activity, nonetheless I saw a large Ocellated lizard (Timon lepidus) retreat into a stone wall.
I then was heading to the village but I had an impulsion to go and check out some more spots on the other side of the village, so I cycled at a leisurely pace and saw a few Ocellated lizards (Timon lepidus) bolt into the stone walls next to the road, but I am much wiser now and don't bother catching these lost causes !
I saw a nice kind of stone wall within the fields and found a large female Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus), measuring 98 cm long, after a lengthily photo shoot, I saw another one dash into the stones, roughly the same size I think.
I ended up next to this water way, and the adjacent gardens had pipes taking water from the canal for the plants in the gardens, one pipe system had a cover over it, I don't know why, but taking the cover off allowed me to surprise an adult female Ocellated lizard (Timon lepidus), so after seeing so many today I did actually get to photograph one !
Just a few minutes later I also surprised another one, a juvenile this time, who was in the middle of an empty field, what was he doing there ? Anyway it was an easy catch. After the photos I headed home for real, I am pleased with today...
Female Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis) - © Daniel Phillips
Female Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis) - © Daniel Phillips
Viperine snake (Natrix maura) - © Daniel Phillips
Female Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus) - © Daniel Phillips
Habitat of the Montpellier snake - © Daniel Phillips
Typical of the Ocellated lizard (Timon lepidus) - © Daniel Phillips
Female Ocallated lizard (Timon lepidus) - © Daniel Phillips
That first Ocallated lizard was found under that blue cover - © Daniel Phillips
Juvenile Ocallated lizard (Timon lepidus) - © Daniel Phillips
Sunday 16th March 2008
Conditions: Very windy.
Temperature : around 18 C
Time of observations: 15h00 to 16h00It was windy but sunny so I decided to take a look for any herp activity, first of all I found 2 Euscorpius flavicaudis (scorpions), then I searched the usual hot spots with no luck, I saw scurry into a pile of stones a young Ocellated lizard (Timon lepidus). I saw at random places Large psammodromus (Psammodromus algirus), on my way home I thought maybe there might be some interesting amphibians to find at a pond, I got there and turning over stones helped me find 2 Grass snakes (Natrix natrix), one of which regurgitated a Stripeless Tree frog (Hyla meridionalis).
Euscorpius flavicaudis - © Daniel Phillips
Juvenile Grass snake (Natrix natrix) - © Daniel Phillips
Same juvenile Grass snake (natrix natrix) - © Daniel Phillips
The larger Grass snake (Natrix natrix) - © Daniel Phillips
same specimen - © Daniel Phillips
Dead and half consumed Stripeless Tree frog (Hyla meridionalis) - © Daniel Phillips
