It's always worth it to go out (for Salamandra) ;-)

[Pierre-Yves Vaucher]

Nice spot !!
I find it interesting to see how the yellow color develops from a dorsal broadband to finish with two longitudinal stripes interrupted. That goes for terrestris, then for other sub-species, development (migration of xanthophores) is different. With fastuosa for example or some terrestris from Harz (north Germany), individuals become more yellow with age and the black color can disappear, leaving only traces of longitudinal stripes and on the snout.

[Jürgen Gebhart]

Oh, the night herper is back in the field! Nice!
Have you already found your first reptile?

[Jeroen Speybroeck]

night herper

Yessss, pretty hardcore/idiotic (*) this time - from 00:30 until 02:30. Love the silence in the woods at night, despite consequential face that looks even more like a train wreck than usual...
(*): cross out what doesn't apply

Have you already found your first reptile?

Please stop making fun of me... I'm gonna cry...
Three slow worms under my artificial cover plates, because that's all there is in my home town...

In 23 days, it'll be buckets full of aspis, seoanei and latastei, hahaha!!!

[Ilian Velikov]

Not really all that special, but quite an interesting observation, since records of predation of adult fire salamanders in the wild are quite rare

Quite interesting, indeed! Rats are very resilient to toxines, but it's still surprising that with all that food available (acorns,etc.) the rat would eat something toxic and supposedly distasteful!

By the way, your slow worm refugia seems to be positioned well into that bush and I think that unless it's very hot in summer it might be a bit shady when the vegetation has leaves. I personally think that if you pull it a bit further outside the bush (but not too much), you would have better results. Just a thought...

[Jürgen Gebhart]

night herper

Yessss, pretty hardcore/idiotic (*) this time - from 00:30 until 02:30. Love the silence in the woods at night, despite consequential face that looks even more like a train wreck than usual...
(*): cross out what doesn't apply

Hardcore!!!

Have you already found your first reptile?

Please stop making fun of me... I'm gonna cry...
Three slow worms under my artificial cover plates, because that's all there is in my home town...


Congrats on that!!!

In 23 days, it'll be buckets full of aspis, seoanei and latastei, hahaha!!!

In 36 days, it`ll be buckets full of Echis coloratus, Montevipera bornmuelleri, Daboia palasestinae, hahaha!!!

[Jeroen Speybroeck]

if you pull it a bit further outside the bush (but not too much), you would have better results.

Well, that's what I thought as well. Did find a wormpie underneath it a few weeks ago, though (hope that rat moves out and doesn't get to him...). This is indeed my most "sunken" one and I've been thinking about moving it, but I'm still leaving it since I decide to change nothing for 2 years. It takes time for a board to settle into a new position.

After 1 year, 9 out of 10 of my tins were succesful (although no 'families' yet) and about 12 different animals in total. I might double or triple the number of tins next year or so. At least this is a fun thingy to do, as it doesnt involve hundreds of photos to cross-check

[Jeroen Speybroeck]

In 36 days, it`ll be buckets full of Echis coloratus, Montevipera bornmuelleri, Daboia palasestinae, hahaha!!!

Tssssss... sad how your enthusiazm kauses deez dreadfuk speling erorz...
(hèhè, felt like 10 years old again for a moment)

[Ilian Velikov]

It takes time for a board to settle into a new position.

I agree, however, if you decide to move it now is the time since soon there will be a lot of new growth and the vegetation will help the tin to 'settle' much quicker than in other surcumstances (e.g. summer when everything is overgrown)

At least this is a fun thingy to do, as it doesnt involve hundreds of photos to cross-check

Do you mean identifing the individual slow worms? Some of them look pretty similar. You have to posess a pretty good memory to remember them all without photos.

[Jeroen Speybroeck]

now is the time since soon there will be a lot of new growth

That's where I cheat. I cut the vegetation during my monthly visits, if necessary. If not, all my boards become inaccessible by the end of April or May due to bramble and fern jungle.

Do you mean identifing the individual slow worms?

Yes. Spotting patterns (e.g. on supralabials) are unique. Haven't taken pics of all of them, but these 12 were easy to tell apart due to sex, size, location, state of tail loss/regrowth. I intend to photograph head profiles more often from now on. Juveniles might be tricky, though. No idea on how these patterns change with age. Still have a lot of reading to do on this species' life cycle, because I've been reading over 150 Salamandra papers over the last month - an unhealthy passtime that develops into a serious condition in cases of prolonged lack of rain.

[Jürgen Gebhart]

(hèhè, felt like 10 years old again for a moment)

me too!