Back from the vacation/herping Trip with my wife.
We start the Trip at Wednesday April 23th in the afternoon and drove to South Tyrol (Bolzano Area).
We have been there till Sunday morning.
I start searching, stop,
I have to work on my pessimistic Attitude,
I start finding Herps on Thursday morning.
I found, of course both common Lizard Species.
Podarcis muralis maculiventris
Lacerta bilineata
During a hike, when I stop the car I saw a few Podarcis muralis, I was walking over a grass area a Lizard run between my feet. I thought these Wall Lizards are everywhere. But the Lizard was slow and I caught it. To my surprise it was a Zootoca vivipara.
The first I ever saw in South Tyrol!!!
After seeing the first Hierophis basking in the sun a few weeks ago in Switzerland I found my second, a nice black one.
Normally I found the Natrix helvetica DOR in this area, but this time I found the first one alive.
The place where I know that Natrix tessellata occur is place with many people around.
I saw them most of the time coming out of the water and disappearing in to the bushes.
This time was the first time for a poor pic.
And finally, the first time for me in this area, the Asp viper.
On Sunday morning it was a lot of rain in the area.
I decided, before we left to Tuscany, that this is the right time for a short mander-Trip.
I found three in a half hour.
They were much bigger than the one`s I found a few weeks ago in Germany, moree than 20 cm
So south Tyrol was not bad, I hopped the best for the Tuscany.
But we left South Tyrol with heavy rain and 12 Degrees and arrived six hours later in
Porto Santo Stefano/Monte Argentario (south Tuscany) with 13 Degrees and still heavy rain.
On Monday still cold, still rain, and we made a shopping tour to one of my favorite City’s in the World - Siena.
On Tuesday the weather was not that bad, sunny but cold, and we made a hiking Tour around Porto Santo Stefano.
We made the same tour in 2012, the difference was in 2012 was the temperature over 30 Degrees and we saw less than 10 Geckos and Lizards.
This time we saw a lot of them.
Podarcis muralis nigriventris
Podarcis siculus campestris
I also saw some Hierophis viridiflavus
A big point was the found a Testudo herrmanni, they are not common on Monte Argentario.
I know I have just a very small chance to find Discoglossus sardus and I use it!
The most rare Frog on Italy mainland!!!
But no Vipera`s!
On Wednesday we change our accommodation and drove to the middle of the Tuscany.
Before we drove to the Hotel, we stopped at a spot that somebody gives me, his best Asp Spot in Tuscany. I visited the place in June 2012 and don`t found one.
It is a very nice place, 11 Reptile species occur there (Podarcis siculus, P. muralis, Lacerta bilineata, Chalcides chalcides, Testudo herrmanni, Emys orbicularis, Natrix Helvetica, Hierophis viridiflavus, Zamenis longissimus, Elaphe quadrolineata and Vipera aspis).
Maybe also good for Natrix tessellate and Anguis veronensis
I left my wife in the car with the words, “I`m back in 15 Minutes”.
After one and a half hour I was back and I was very disappointed.
I saw all three Lizard Species, 3 Hierophis, a Emys and two Testudo`s
and I pictured my first Rana dalmatina in Tuscany.
After that Drama we visited the City Volterra for good meal. (Thunder storm with hail)
On Thursday Morning I tried it again.
At first I flipped a Hierophis
And than I found some Testudo`s (all in all 12)
A nice Lacerta bilineata
And finally my first alive Asp in Tuscany!!!
In the afternoon we visited Livorno, what an ugly City, first and last time!
Friday back home, we left Tuscany with rain and 13 Degrees and eight hours later we came back home, 13 Degrees overcast.
All in all a very successful Herp-Trip and very nice vacation.
But I think with some better weather conditions, less rain, higher temperatures more success would be possible.
I hope the team in South Italy have/had more Luck with the Weather.