Search found 27 matches

by Robert Mendyk
August 4th, 2013, 1:55 pm
Forum: Reading Room
Topic: non-fiction pleasure reading?
Replies: 29
Views: 14343

Re: non-fiction pleasure reading?

As far as books on natural history go, I prefer the oldies, and would recommend any of William Beebe's books, particularly those which deal with this travels and studies in forests of Guyana and Venezuela (Jungle Days, Jungle Peace, Edge of the Jungle, and High Jungle). His books Galapagos: World's ...
by Robert Mendyk
December 1st, 2011, 6:43 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Bornean Earless Lizard (Lanthanotus borneensis)
Replies: 41
Views: 25658

Re: Bornean Earless Lizard (Lanthanotus borneensis)

Hans, if you email me, I have a few papers and notes on Lanthanotus that I'd be happy to share with you.
by Robert Mendyk
December 1st, 2011, 6:42 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Bornean Earless Lizard (Lanthanotus borneensis)
Replies: 41
Views: 25658

Re: Bornean Earless Lizard (Lanthanotus borneensis)

Lanthanotus are strange animals indeed... I was hoping to miraculously encounter one during my brief time in Sarawak this past July, but no such luck. I guess for now I'll have to make do with pickled stuff.

Image
by Robert Mendyk
October 4th, 2011, 3:25 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Costa Rica inquiry-mid Pacific coast cruising/lodging/hiking
Replies: 7
Views: 1231

Re: Costa Rica inquiry-mid Pacific coast cruising/lodging/hi

About 45 km south of Quepos/M.A. is Dominical, a quiet surfer town. Just a few km up the road from Dominical is Parque Reptilandia, a must see reptile zoo owned and operated by an American expat. Just a few km past the zoo are hiking trails to Nuayaca Falls- a nice, healthy hike up to some spectacul...
by Robert Mendyk
September 15th, 2011, 8:48 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Very cool stuff, Bob. Do you know which issue of Herp Review it'll be in? I look forward to reading the report. Have you tried similar experiments with any other members of the prasinus complex, or other species of varanids? It appears in Vol. 42 No. 3 which should be arriving in people's mailboxes...
by Robert Mendyk
September 15th, 2011, 8:34 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Great observations and video. Are the 3rd and 4th fingers on that monitor longer than normal? Perhaps if they are longer it is specifically for this purpose! While I am not sure if the long and slender limbs and digits evolved in response to this type of foraging (i.e., a potentially unused/open ni...
by Robert Mendyk
September 12th, 2011, 8:10 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Oops, my apologies for not posting the reference. It has just been published in the latest issue of Herp Review. Mendyk, R.W. and H.-G. Horn. 2011. Skilled forelimb movements and extractive foraging in the arboreal monitor lizard Varanus beccarii (Doria 1847). Herpetological Review 42(3): 343-349.
by Robert Mendyk
September 12th, 2011, 7:53 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Does the lizard scrape the food item out or grasp it and pull it out. I know that lizard has the capability to grasp. It does look like a unique instinctive behavior... ...I'd still like to know if the lizard grabbed the prey or if it dragged it out? I'd say it's a combination of the two. From what...
by Robert Mendyk
September 12th, 2011, 7:22 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Robert, any evidence of 'handedness' in specific animals? I.e. are certain ones left or right handed? Success ratio different for either 'hand'? All specimens tested in the study (n=3) successfully used both hands interchangeably depending on their body positioning in relation to the hole, and I di...
by Robert Mendyk
September 12th, 2011, 7:15 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

Re: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Robert, How long did it take before the lizard used its claw to get the worm? Thats a neat form of behavioral enrichment. Thanks for sharing :thumb: It didn't take long for individuals to successfully retrieve the prey once the conscious decision was made to abandon use of the jaws and switch to th...
by Robert Mendyk
September 11th, 2011, 7:49 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards
Replies: 33
Views: 8285

A clever foraging tactic in arboreal monitor lizards

Since some of the participants of this forum aren't members of the SSAR and don't receive Herp. Review, I thought I'd share with you some photos and video which supplement an article of mine co-authored with Hans-Georg Horn appearing in the latest issue. Basically, we discovered that when presented ...
by Robert Mendyk
September 7th, 2011, 5:30 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: The State of Nature TV
Replies: 165
Views: 20900

Re: The State of Nature TV

In the end of the video I see how the animal calms down and the so aggressivly presented snake is suddenly a very docile, beautiful animal. I strongly believe that this was a matter of the snake becoming physically exhausted from being harassed for at least 10 minutes (who knows how many takes this...
by Robert Mendyk
September 4th, 2011, 9:00 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: The State of Nature TV
Replies: 165
Views: 20900

Re: The State of Nature TV

I can't believe he once said he was inspired by David Attenborough. From what I understand (correct me if I am wrong), Attenborough's series on reptiles Life In Cold Blood started to air in the US but was cut off after three episodes because of lack of viewers. Not enough people jumping on the anim...
by Robert Mendyk
February 9th, 2011, 1:36 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Non-Iquitos Peruvian Herping?
Replies: 2
Views: 1219

Non-Iquitos Peruvian Herping?

Are there any other areas or regions in the country besides Iquitos which are worth checking out herp-wise, perhaps outside the Amazon basin? I might be heading down to Peru later this spring, but may not have the time or ability to make it all the way up to that part of the country. I've got some i...
by Robert Mendyk
October 17th, 2010, 7:29 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: PAPUA NEW GUINEA help
Replies: 14
Views: 3298

Re: PAPUA NEW GUINEA help

I just went looking for it through my various online book sources, a number of which specialize in rare books, and none of them know of a copy available. In my experience, that's pretty unusual. :( Gerry It is a rather obscure title; I first learned about it when I stumbled across it at Eric Thiss'...
by Robert Mendyk
October 16th, 2010, 9:04 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: PAPUA NEW GUINEA help
Replies: 14
Views: 3298

Re: PAPUA NEW GUINEA help

I would highly recommend reading Karl-Heinz Switak's excellent book entitled "Adventures in Green Python Country". Although the accounts in it are now a couple of decades old, it really gives you an idea of what to expect in New Guinea (people, lack of infrastructure, remoteness, animal pe...
by Robert Mendyk
September 25th, 2010, 12:52 pm
Forum: Reading Room
Topic: BIAWAK (varanid journal)- Volume 4 Number 3 now available
Replies: 0
Views: 2194

BIAWAK (varanid journal)- Volume 4 Number 3 now available

Greetings folks, Volume 4 Number 3 of BIAWAK, the open access biological journal of the International Varanid Interest Group, has just been released, and is available for free download here: http://varanidae.org/4_3.pdf Pdfs of each individual article will soon be available for download at http://va...
by Robert Mendyk
August 6th, 2010, 5:39 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Chytrid fungus- field herpers contributing to this pandemic?
Replies: 10
Views: 3495

Chytrid fungus- field herpers contributing to this pandemic?

Given the apparent ease at which chytrid fungus is spread, and the incredible durability of its spores, it's reasonable to assume that amateur field herpers and researchers are (unknowingly) doing their part to spread this pathogen from one body of water to another, whether it's through contaminated...
by Robert Mendyk
August 4th, 2010, 8:48 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Getting around...
Replies: 8
Views: 2263

Re: Getting around...

Great post! Those Eurycea longicauda are personal favorites of mine as well- saw some spectacular individuals in Valley Forge State Park earlier this summer.
by Robert Mendyk
August 4th, 2010, 11:47 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)
Replies: 17
Views: 8942

Re: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)

Thanks for the species ID's and corrections Cole and Travis- I admittedly know very little about inverts at the moment and appreciate the education! Chris, that's the deer I saw, thank you for identifying it for me. As for the DOR Coniophanes , I could very well be wrong, though using Lee (2000), th...
by Robert Mendyk
August 3rd, 2010, 2:31 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)
Replies: 17
Views: 8942

Re: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)

Hmm, I'm not sure what it could have been. I did see quite a few true bugs which were of decent size and looked like they could deliver a bite. While down there, I was bitten and stung by at least 4 orders of insects. The worst of them all was probably the biting flies (several different types), as ...
by Robert Mendyk
August 1st, 2010, 10:48 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)
Replies: 17
Views: 8942

Re: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)

Jonathan- yes, I certainly lucked out when it came to the weather, especially after reading about your hectic experience- though what an experience that was! The bridge along the Southern Highway that got washed away while you were there is still gone; a temporary bridge was erected a hundred or so ...
by Robert Mendyk
August 1st, 2010, 10:23 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)
Replies: 17
Views: 8942

Re: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)

Here's a sampling of some of the bugs of Belize Bizarre caterpillars http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs198.snc4/38254_1550573205157_1259924396_1536144_3082425_n.jpg http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs198.snc4/38254_1550573285159_1259924396_1536146_6735375_n.jpg http://sphotos....
by Robert Mendyk
July 31st, 2010, 10:28 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)
Replies: 17
Views: 8942

A month in Belize (long narrative, lots of photos...)

Greetings folks, Here is a sampling of some of the photos I took during a month of backpacking solo through Belize (30 June- 27 July 2010). Half of my time was spent camping out in wildlife sanctuaries, where I did most of my herping, and the other half was spent traveling between cities, towns, and...
by Robert Mendyk
July 28th, 2010, 11:27 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: The Yucatan Peninsula: Belize and Guatemala
Replies: 16
Views: 6221

Re: The Yucatan Peninsula: Belize and Guatemala

I just returned from a month down in Belize, half of which was spent herping (new thread to follow once I go through the 8 GB of photos I took). Surprisingly (or perhaps not so surprising given Belize's infrastructure), that washed-out bridge on the Southern Highway is still gone, hasn't been repair...
by Robert Mendyk
June 21st, 2010, 1:53 pm
Forum: Reading Room
Topic: BIAWAK- journal of varanid biology- Vol. 4 No. 2 released
Replies: 0
Views: 2152

BIAWAK- journal of varanid biology- Vol. 4 No. 2 released

Greetings folks, Volume 4 Number 2 of BIAWAK, the open access biological journal of the International Varanid Interest Group, has just been released, and is available for free download here: http://varanidae.org/Vol4_No2.pdf High resolution pdfs of each individual article will soon be available for ...
by Robert Mendyk
June 12th, 2010, 9:24 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Variation in P. cinereus
Replies: 28
Views: 6329

Re: Variation in P. cinereus

Awesome thread. Regardless of how common P. cinereus is, I do admire its polymorphism. Some real stunners there, particularly the erythristic ones!