Search found 80 matches
- November 22nd, 2019, 11:01 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Moving back to Taiwan, plus a great Christmas book gift for your herping friends (and yourself)
- Replies: 4
- Views: 2405
Re: Moving back to Taiwan, plus a great Christmas book gift for your herping friends (and yourself)
Hi Hans. Just checked in here for the first time in a year and happened to see your post. Moving back to Taiwan, eh? How exciting. My wife and I made the move to Canada last year, but we think about returning to Taiwan on pretty much a daily basis. I can see us moving back in a couple of years, once...
- April 29th, 2018, 12:44 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: A couple of Thai snakes
- Replies: 0
- Views: 5801
A couple of Thai snakes
A short trip to Koh Phi Phi in the Andaman Sea of Southern Thailand last month, and I managed a few hours wandering in the woods along the spine of the island. I snapped the following fuzzy shots of two snakes, the first of which seems to be a wolf snake, the second a bridle snake. Maybe those famil...
- January 26th, 2018, 9:24 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Spotted Keelback (yellow) and others
- Replies: 6
- Views: 5193
Re: Spotted Keelback (yellow) and others
Another very enjoyable, polished video. Keep 'em coming!
- January 26th, 2018, 6:34 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan 2017 roundup
- Replies: 8
- Views: 17080
Re: Taiwan 2017 roundup
Thanks John. Couldn't agree more about the Ovophis, though I really can't take any credit for the photography. Strictly point and shoot stuff. Anyway, to finish off, some amphibians. I didn't manage to make it up to the high hills to look for salamanders last year, but I've been finding it an increa...
- January 24th, 2018, 7:48 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan 2017 roundup
- Replies: 8
- Views: 17080
Re: Taiwan 2017 roundup
A few more pics. Sundry reptiles, in no particular order. The first turtle - or terrapin, as I was brought up to call them - lives in the little pond at the end of my street, along wih a small Ocadia sinensis . I can't imagine they came to be there naturally, in a little park surrounded by residenti...
- January 24th, 2018, 7:42 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan 2017 roundup
- Replies: 8
- Views: 17080
Re: Taiwan 2017 roundup
Thanks for the comment Dan. Nothing wrong with Latin America either, in my opinion. A couple more pics I could have uploaded at the time, but which failed quality control standards of the day. A freshly killed Sauter's grass snake found by the side of the road ... probably by the wheel of a scooter,...
- January 22nd, 2018, 7:18 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan 2017 roundup
- Replies: 8
- Views: 17080
Taiwan 2017 roundup
Hello all. Just thought I should post this hodgepodge of 2017 Taiwan herp photos before we get any further into 2018. I was pretty happy with last year's haul. I didn't feel like my herping technique was really up to snuff in 2016 and while I can't honestly say that practice made perfect in 2017, pe...
- December 1st, 2017, 11:58 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Treasures of Taiwan 2017. Part 1
- Replies: 1
- Views: 2436
Re: Treasures of Taiwan 2017. Part 1
A hundred snakes in four days? It takes me several months to spot that many. Others might contend that T. stejnegeri is the most common species, rather than C. major. I probably see more D. rufozonatum than anything else, but that's hardly a scientific observation. That DOR false viper must have bee...
- December 1st, 2017, 11:47 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Treasures of Taiwan 2017. Part 2
- Replies: 4
- Views: 5711
Re: Treasures of Taiwan 2017. Part 2
Lovely pics. That hundred pacer is a beauty. Just about all the many-banded kraits I've encountered over the past couple of years have been docile. Very nice to observe. I think the photo of Gunther's frog (it's in Sylvirana now?) is actually a Polypedates braueri. Maybe P. megacephalus, but the fai...
- October 10th, 2017, 1:21 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Japanese Corn Snake
- Replies: 8
- Views: 6185
Re: Japanese Corn Snake
Rather a horrendous story ...
- September 30th, 2017, 1:33 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Japanese Corn Snake
- Replies: 8
- Views: 6185
Re: Japanese Corn Snake
That's a pretty snake.
Good timing on the stick insect joke too ...
Good timing on the stick insect joke too ...
- September 16th, 2017, 1:55 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Madagascar Part 8: Anjozorobe National Park
- Replies: 2
- Views: 3489
Re: Madagascar Part 8: Anjozorobe National Park
A stunning series of pictures. Great photography. Bravo!
- September 8th, 2017, 8:58 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Cambodia ID Request
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2589
Re: Cambodia ID Request
Yup, the first is Duttaphrynus melanostictus, the last is a Polypedates, either leucomystax or megacephalus ... I'm not sure which is the dominant species in Cambodia; it's rather a confusing genus.
Not sure about the skink, though your guess looks reasonable.
Not sure about the skink, though your guess looks reasonable.
- September 2nd, 2017, 10:08 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Help me ID this ratsnake ... I know you can!
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2099
Re: Help me ID this ratsnake ... I know you can!
And I think you should be right. Thanks!
- September 2nd, 2017, 10:05 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: One day spent in Gutian Mountain, China
- Replies: 4
- Views: 2865
Re: One day spent in Gutian Mountain, China
Very nice pics. Lovely patterning on the Odorrana schmackeri. I come across a lot of Dinodon rufozonatum here in Taiwan, so the yellow Dinodon makes a nice contrast to what I'm used to seeing.
- September 1st, 2017, 11:47 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Help me ID this ratsnake ... I know you can!
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2099
Help me ID this ratsnake ... I know you can!
Hi there, I was thinking of giving this post a title like, "Excellent ratsnake pics!" to lure readers in, but decided that would be cruel given the rubbish I'm about to display. Nothing excellent here, just a couple of woeful snaps taken while having a frustrating encounter a few days ago....
- July 25th, 2017, 5:44 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Common Ratsnake?
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2423
Re: Common Ratsnake?
Another very enjoyable video ... hope you got enough sleep before your next flight! It looks like a Ptyas mucosa to me, though I have no personal experience with them. I guess your finding a blind snake makes up for the disappointment of coming across a giant worm earlier in the night and thinking i...
- July 24th, 2017, 4:54 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Crocs in Khao Yai, Thailand
- Replies: 1
- Views: 2292
Crocs in Khao Yai, Thailand
I should have written this a few months ago, but ... well ... I'm lazy. In a nutshell, I was just wondering if anyone had the definitive word on the crocs that live in the Huai Lam Takhong River between the Pha Kluai Mai Waterfall and Haew Suwat Waterfall in Khao Yai National Park in Thailand. (For ...
- July 14th, 2017, 5:21 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Field Herping | Ratsnakes in Japan
- Replies: 6
- Views: 3880
Re: Field Herping | Ratsnakes in Japan
Another very enjoyable video. I can imagine your happiness at lifting those boards and seeing the same snakes, knowing you hadn't scared them off previously. Good luck next time as well. Watching these videos makes me wish I'd looked for a good spot in Taiwan and put down some boards a couple of yea...
- June 11th, 2017, 9:51 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Some snakes from Taiwan
- Replies: 3
- Views: 2330
Re: Some snakes from Taiwan
A nice selection! Right there, you have more species in about three weeks than I've managed in a year and a half. Did you see any others not photographed or shown? No luck with the Macropisthodon this time? I might be wrong, but a couple of those snakes look familiar to me. That dark Psammodynastes ...
- May 7th, 2017, 8:34 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Lifer King Cobra
- Replies: 23
- Views: 17279
Re: Lifer King Cobra
Congratulations. What a great feeling that must have been! A beautiful snake. I can feel your trepidation towards the end of the video. Who was the man; were you able to glean his motives? Maybe he was a local herp enthusiast, suspicious of what you were up to with your newfangled Facebook Live and ...
- March 20th, 2017, 10:24 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Malaysia 2017, part 4: Fraser's Hill
- Replies: 10
- Views: 8456
Re: Malaysia 2017, part 4: Fraser's Hill
Just catching these posts now. Top notch stuff ... informative information and picturesque pictures. Bravo, sir!
- March 7th, 2017, 5:25 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Malaysia 2017, part 1: Semenyih, or, Night of the Lifers
- Replies: 20
- Views: 13639
Re: Malaysia 2017, part 1: Semenyih, or, Night of the Lifers
Lovely pics. I'll second the admiration for the Rhacophorus norhayatii ; I'm a sucker for any frog sporting atypical froggy colours (or at least my idea of "atypical", meaning red or blue). I also hadn't heard of it previous to your post, but it's a good 'un! Love the cinnamon frog too. An...
- January 3rd, 2017, 7:15 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Favorite Herp Pics of 2016
- Replies: 6
- Views: 4016
Re: Favorite Herp Pics of 2016
Absolutely beautiful!
- January 3rd, 2017, 7:14 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Madagascar 16
- Replies: 11
- Views: 6309
Re: Madagascar 16
Amazing photos! Beautiful geckos. Too bad about the suitcase ... hope you didn't lose anything too valuable.
- January 1st, 2017, 2:32 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
- Replies: 11
- Views: 5591
Re: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
You are a brave man for extolling the wonders of seeing a Brahminy Blind Snake just before tossing in a few shots of a One-eared Koala Cobra. Thanks! What can I say ... I like blind snakes, and I'm only moderately ashamed to admit it. Sorry, I had a senior moment there. No idea what I was thinking ...
- December 30th, 2016, 10:55 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
- Replies: 11
- Views: 5591
Re: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
And finally frogs and toads. I was pretty lazy about anuran photography these past few months, though I did come across some nice specimens along the way. I'll try to focus on the photos and spare the gentle reader a deluge of words. Taiwan has two indigenous toad species. Thankfully the cane toad h...
- December 30th, 2016, 8:40 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
- Replies: 11
- Views: 5591
Re: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
Hi Hans, thanks. Um ... Taiwan now has three Boigas? That's news to me. Those crazy taxonomists, eh? Next thing you know they'll be splitting Taiwan's Pareas into three species. Oh, wait a minute, they already did that. And Dinodon rufozonatum is now a Lycodon? Ahhh, let's wait and see ... knowing h...
- December 29th, 2016, 9:30 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
- Replies: 11
- Views: 5591
Re: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
Thanks guys! I'm ready to go into battle with Flickr once again and upload some more photos. Sundry non-snake reptiles this time. I'll try to cut down on the words this time though. Japalura swinhonis (probably ... I have a hard time with japalura IDs) https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8279/29388278086_...
- December 26th, 2016, 11:57 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
- Replies: 11
- Views: 5591
Taiwan herps from the second half of 2016
Just thought I'd post some photos of various Taiwan herps I've seen since July this year, a followup to a couple of posts from back in June covering the first half of the year. I could have posted earlier but I was hoping for one final (snake) species to add to the list, since my species tally stall...
- October 31st, 2016, 1:44 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Japanese Grass Lizard
- Replies: 2
- Views: 2749
Re: Japanese Grass Lizard
Another nice video. Looks like you've had some pretty good finds at these spots over the course of various visits. I really should find some scrubby grassland with flippable boards here in the outskirts of Taipei; up till now all my herping has been nocturnal prowling along walls and ditches. I neve...
- October 26th, 2016, 10:42 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: From the last couple of weeks. Kwa-Zulu Natal - South Africa
- Replies: 6
- Views: 4430
Re: From the last couple of weeks. Kwa-Zulu Natal - South Af
Well done that rhombic night adder!
Another excellent post from South Africa.
Another excellent post from South Africa.
- October 24th, 2016, 9:57 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Thai mock viper (Psammodynastes pulver) eye change mimicry.
- Replies: 2
- Views: 1957
Re: Thai mock viper (Psammodynastes pulver) eye change mimic
Interesting, though I have to say that - in my opinion - here in Taiwan the mock viper doesn't do a very good job of mimicking the local pitvipers. Perhaps in a million or so more years of evolution, but not quite yet! That said, I've seen a few with their heads bashed in, so either they actually di...
- October 24th, 2016, 9:41 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan in October
- Replies: 9
- Views: 3818
Re: Taiwan in October
Nice!
- October 24th, 2016, 9:40 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Frogs in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa - Spring 2016
- Replies: 5
- Views: 3960
Re: Frogs in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa - Spring 2016
Great stuff! Love the shovel-nosed frog, and that plaintive rain frog looks like you Photoshopped a grumpy old man's face onto a toadstool or something. Excellent.
- October 20th, 2016, 9:56 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan in October
- Replies: 9
- Views: 3818
Re: Taiwan in October
That's a nice selection! And you found a beauty snake after all!
I didn't see many green tree vipers for the first 2/3 of the year, but I've been seeing them regularly for the past month and a half.
I look forward to seeing the rest of your photos.
I didn't see many green tree vipers for the first 2/3 of the year, but I've been seeing them regularly for the past month and a half.
I look forward to seeing the rest of your photos.
- October 17th, 2016, 1:08 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Snakes from Taiwan, May-September 2016.
- Replies: 4
- Views: 2824
Re: Snakes from Taiwan, May-September 2016.
Very nice pictures! Some snakes there that I still have to see. Where do you do most of your herping?
- August 25th, 2016, 4:56 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Queensland trips overview [pic heavy]
- Replies: 16
- Views: 9712
Re: Queensland trips overview [pic heavy]
Amazing photographs, though depressing for those of us looking at our own snaps and realising we'll never achieve that level of quality!
- August 17th, 2016, 8:12 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Thailand - Some cool "Not-a-snakes"
- Replies: 4
- Views: 2825
Re: Thailand - Some cool "Not-a-snakes"
Aye, that's it, between Pha Kluai Mai Waterfall (campsite) and Heo Suwat Waterfall. When I first went there five years ago there were a few "Beware of Crocodile" signs at that wide stretch, which at the time I guessed must actually refer to monitors. On my next few visits there were more p...
- August 15th, 2016, 11:19 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Thailand - Some cool "Not-a-snakes"
- Replies: 4
- Views: 2825
Re: Thailand - Some cool "Not-a-snakes"
Nice pics! Lucky you to see the sun bear. And that darned croc in Khao Yai! I've been in that park at least four times now, and only once - perhaps - caught a momentary glimpse of the top of its head before it submerged. Or perhaps I didn't see it at all. (Though I did come face to face with a bull ...
- August 4th, 2016, 9:20 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: 2 Banded Kraits and 2 Chinese Cobras
- Replies: 10
- Views: 5068
Re: 2 Banded Kraits and 2 Chinese Cobras
Great stuff. Did you get the impression that your friends usually get those kinds of numbers on an average night?
- July 20th, 2016, 5:54 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Massive sea turtle deaths in Florida following fireworks
- Replies: 23
- Views: 9998
Re: Massive sea turtle deaths in Florida following fireworks
Good on you for pushing the issue. I hope you were able to get through to some conservation officials about this. What a shocker. I don't particularly want to add to the "bad government" topic that's been sprawling all over the forum recently, but what do you make of a regulation preventin...
- July 19th, 2016, 9:57 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan frogs from the first half of 2016
- Replies: 5
- Views: 4584
Re: Taiwan frogs from the first half of 2016
Thanks Hans. Did you manage to see much in the way of Taiwanese herps towards the end of your visit? Great photos and descriptions. I would love to see Hynobius in the wild sometime. Also, that was interesting information about the Polypedates. I'm going to have to read up on that. Thanks! I would l...
- June 30th, 2016, 4:15 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan reptiles from the first half of 2016
- Replies: 6
- Views: 3970
Re: Taiwan reptiles from the first half of 2016
Thanks! Agreed ... I never tire of seeing Trimeresurus either. Ditto for Rhacophorus, re. the other post ... and this year has certainly turned up way more of the latter than the former.
- June 28th, 2016, 4:32 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan reptiles from the first half of 2016
- Replies: 6
- Views: 3970
Taiwan reptiles from the first half of 2016
Over the past couple of years I've been poking around northern Taiwan, sometimes further south, looking for amphibians. This year I thought I'd try to look a little harder for reptiles as well. I'll admit I'm still not very good at it. Anyway, here are some photos from the first half of the year. I ...
- June 27th, 2016, 5:07 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Taiwan frogs from the first half of 2016
- Replies: 5
- Views: 4584
Taiwan frogs from the first half of 2016
Just a few photographs of Taiwanese frogs taken this year, in no particular order. I hoped to see some salamanders, but that was not to be (see attached rant at the end). I apologise in advance for what I know is going to be a rambling post. I'll get some questionable photos of the green pond frog o...
- June 27th, 2016, 4:43 pm
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: next generation, frog-blood-suckers, calling frogs
- Replies: 3
- Views: 2880
Re: next generation, frog-blood-suckers, calling frogs
Nice pictures!
- December 1st, 2014, 8:42 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Please enlighten a naive young man
- Replies: 7
- Views: 5026
Re: Please enlighten a naive young man
the dream would be to make it as far south as Darien National Park on the Colombia/Panama border but this is going to be my first foray into jungle herping and I don't want to bite off more than I can chew. How safe is Darien? should I gain experience in more predictable areas before attempting it,...
- July 9th, 2014, 9:53 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Herping Borneo
- Replies: 10
- Views: 3843
Re: Herping Borneo
numpty - I'm looking for areas I can herp without a guide, tour, etc. As with all my travels, I would rather fail miserably on my own than see everything with a guide :) Steve I totally agree with that sentiment. I've probably missed out on seeing all sorts of wildlife over the years by trying to g...
- July 9th, 2014, 7:36 am
- Forum: The Forum
- Topic: Herping Borneo
- Replies: 10
- Views: 3843
Re: Herping Borneo
Not sure if you mean you can't go herping without a guide, or else you mean a tourist would just have better results with a guide. I've been able to make solo hikes in a few different SE Asian countries, both in and out of national parks. The situation might have changed in countries with a more mer...