trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Dedicated exclusively to field herping.

Moderator: Scott Waters

Post Reply
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

WARNING: this post is ridiculously long!

This is the report of a fantastic trip. Those of you who read my posts on my trip to Peru in 2013 (see these links to the intro section and the herp section) might recognise the way I will structure this –
1) some general stuff and a bunch of non-herp pics,
2) a systematic overview of the herps,
3) some silly pseudoscientific considerations.

Here we go...

Having seen the wealth of species they turned up in 4 previous trips in pictures, I persuaded my friends Peter and Anniek to take me to their Asian tropical playground – the Malaysian mainland. A crew of eight was quickly formed.

Conditions were fairly dry, as exemplified by cruising (otherwise highly productive) roads for 100+ km a night with less than a handful of snake specimens to show for. Yet, we were eight people and we hit it hard, dividing our effort into one or two crews either cruising or hiking every night. We continued until at least 3am every night. In order not to break down after a week, this meant, however, that only the strongest and the bravest among us ventured out for a limited number of (unproductive) early morning sessions. We slept at 10 different accommodations, spending from one up to three nights at each.

Image

Here are some non-herp (yet some herping) pics.

Langkawi

Image
first snake – python!

Image
time for nasi and juice

Image

Kuala Nerang & Tasik Pedu

Image
viper time!

Image
Tasik Pedu

Image
sweaty me and Ptyas korros - © Michiel Aerts

Belum

Image
Michiel ascending torrent after finding blue coral snake

Image
Belum lake view

Image
Dumbo & me – © Michiel Aerts

Image

Image

Image
mee instead of nasi

Lumut

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
Bert and mangrove pit

Pangkor

Image
cab or ice cream van? – © Frank Deschandol

Image

Image
hornbill

Image
Bert and vine snake

Cameron Highlands & Kuala Woh

Image
Michiel and the endemic pit viper

Image

Image
that’s how you fake it ;)

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Bukit Fraser

Image
abandoned resort & interesting herping spot – © Frank Deschandol

Image
male Popeia fucata and me – © Michiel Aerts

Image
Rhacophorus prominanus attack – © Michiel Aerts

Image
a memorable fucata hunt – © Peter Engelen

Image
Ptyas fusca and me during morning photo session – © Michiel Aerts

Image
much to my embarrassment, only bothered to photograph very few of the crazy invertebrates encountered, but this spider surely is worth it

Tasik Chini

Image
leopard cat

Image
the night time is the right time

Genting Highlands

Image
slow loris

Semenyih

Image
Heteropoda davidbowie

Image
major highlight! – Wallace’s Flying Frog and me – © Michiel Aerts

Image
Patrick, Peter and Snakebite Robbie photographing Rhacophorus next to its foam nest


Still there!? Thanks!!! You’ve definitely earned a bunch of herps now.


LIST OF OBSERVED SPECIES

We found 100+ species of amphibians and reptiles, including about 38 species of snakes. While the former number surely exceeded expectations, the latter was an ever bigger surprise, especially given the weather/seasonal conditions and the fact that we missed out on quite some supposedly fairly common and/or widespread snake species (e.g. Lycodon subcinctus - only DOR, Enhydris spp. - only DOR, Xenopeltis unicolor - only DOR, …).

The total species count could certainly have been higher with more proper preparation (e.g. aiming for endemic amphibs and lizards), but it was a welcome change for me to just simply follow the (in any case highly productive) lead of Peter and Anniek.

Being spoiled by the colourfulness of the Amazonian anurans, I should admit I didn’t photograph their overall duller Asian relatives with the same dedication. The attention paid to non-snake species and frogs in particular by crew members other than myself was fairly restricted. In contrast, some of the more attractive frog species were absolute highlights to the trip and my entire herping ‘career’.

Image

Corrections on the identifications are more than welcome!

AMPHIBIA

Anura

Bufonidae

Ansonia jeetsukumarani (Slender Toad)
This tiny toad was the only representative of its genus that we spotted. It was spotted taking off by Michiel while we were shooting a banded gecko along the famous road at Fraser’s Hill.
Image

Duttaphrynus melanostictus (Asian Toad)
Common, especially in anthropogenic environments, although it is probably far more numerous in wetter parts of the year.
Image

Ingerophrynus parvus (Lesser Toad)
Spotted several times in the forest, along streams or sitting on low leaves.
Image

Phrynoidis aspera (River Toad)
Fairly common, especially close to or in running water. Can get pretty large.
Image
Image

Dicroglossidae

Fejevarya cancrivora (Crab-eating Frog)
Cool to see a frog capable of living (among other places) in mangroves. Can be large.
Image

Fejervarya limnocharis (Field Frog)
Widespread, abundant and very common.
Image
Image

Limnonectes blythii (Malayan Giant Frog)
Adults are big with a long snout. A (very) common frog in the woods, especially near streams.
Image
Image
Image

Limnonectes khasianus
Quite often seen along torrents.
Image

Limnonectes nitidus (Tanahrata Wart Frog)
At Fraser’s Hill, Frank handed me the only specimen.
Image

Limnonectes plicatellus (Rhinoceros Frog)
Odd-looking little frog. Males with a lump on the head that might make you wonder if he is ill. Only a single (jumpy!) one seen, again at Fraser’s.
Image

Occidozyga sp. (puddle frog)
Small specimens were quite numerous in the ditch below the Rhacophorus foam nest (see below).
Image

Megophryidae

Leptobrachium hendricksoni (Spotted Litter Frog)
Commonly encountered when looking for eye shine, these frogs have somewhat strange proportions, with a big head and thin and short hind legs. In contrast to the vast majority of the frog specimens we was, not particularly jumpy and as such seemingly fairly defenseless.
Image
Image

Leptobrachium smithi (Smith’s Litter Frog)
This is the (only?) genus member found on Langkawi.
Image

Xenophrys aceras (Perak Horned Toad)
Finally some rain on our last night on Langkawi, with this one as a reward (yet oddly enough no vipers…).
Image

Xenophrys longipes (Long-legged Horned Toad)
I spotted this very orange frog in a small swampy patch in the woods at Cameron Highlands.
Image

Microhylidae

Kaloula latidisca
A single animal was found sitting at about 1m50 on a tree in our Kuala Nerang accommodation. The rough skin and larger toe pads easily set it apart from the next, more commonly encountered species.
Image
Image

Kaloula pulchra (Banded Bullfrog)
As common as it is cute.
Image

Metaphrynella pollicaris (Malayan Treehole Frog)
Kurt pointed out this tiny animal with frog-like toes and toad-like (angry) facial expression sitting on a leaf next to a small water source at Genting Highlands.
Image

Microhyla butleri (Painted Chorus Frog)
Only seen at Kuala Nerang.
Image

Microhyla fissipes (Ornate Chorus Frog)
Very common.
Image
Image

Microhyla heymonsi (Dark-sided Chorus Frog)
Image

Ranidae

Amolops larutensis (Larut Torrent Frog)
This rather variable species is rather commonly seen at night sitting on rocks in or along fast-flowing water. If disturbed, it may courageously launch itself into the torrential water course.
Image
Image
Image

Chalcorana or Hylarana labialis (White-lipped Frog)
Previously included in Hylarana chalconota. Commonly seen, but hard to tell apart from Odorrana hosii by this layman.
Image
Image
Image

Hoplobatrachus sp.
A non-native frog, spotted at Genting Highlands.

Image
© Michiel Aerts

Hylarana banjarana
Two were found at Fraser’s Hill near small torrents.
Image

Hylarana erythraea (Common Green Frog)
A fairly attractive textbook frog. Common in human environments, including rice paddies, drainages and fish-filled ponds.
Image

Hylarana glandulosa (Rough-sided Frog)
Only this single one near a somewhat larger stream with nice riparian vegetation near Kuala Nerang.
Image

Hylarana laterimaculata (Masked Rough-sided Frog)
A single one was hopping along the Semenyih trail in the rain.
Image

Odorrana hosii (Poisonous Rock Frog)
Not too scarce near flowing water, but see Chalcorana labialis.
Image
Image

Rhacophoridae

Polypedates cf. discantus
Seen at Belum and Kuala Nerang. A species recently described from nearby Thailand.
Image
Image

Polypedates leucomastyx (Four-lined Tree Frog)
Very common. Definitely not always “four-lined”.
Image
Image
Image

Polypedates macrotis (Dark-eared Tree Frog)
Probably only spotted at Semenyih. Can get large.
Image

Rhacophorus bipunctatus (Twin-spotted Flying Frog)
The first of our flyers and as such much appreciated. First found at Cameron Highlands, but later also at the higher elevations of Genting Highlands.
Image
Image

Rhacophorus nigropalmatus (Wallace’s Flying Frog)
Without any doubt my main amphibian desideratum. The Malayan frog fauna may be less colourful than that of the Amazon, but this is beyond debate a Truly Iconic Herpetofauna Species. We were blessed with the find of about 7 animals. Thank you, Kurt!!!Image
Image
Image
Image

Rhacophorus norhayatii (Norhayati’s Flying Frog)
Kurt urged my exhausted body and mind (hey, 3 weeks of hardcore herping gets to you) to continue scrutinizing the spot where we found Wallace’s for the second time. I’m glad he did, because there was one of these beauties hiding in the undergrowth. Similar size as the previous species.
Image
Image

Rhacophorus pardalis (Harlequin Flying Frog)
This was number three of a trifecta of flying frogs found within less than 20m of each other. Thanks again to Kurt for pointing it out to me.
Image

Rhacophorus prominanus (Malayan or Jade Flying Frog)
Wallace’s it ain’t but a genuine beauty in its own right. Several were found in a roadside ditch at Fraser’s Hill.
Image

Gymnophiona

Ichthyophiidae

Caudacaecilia sp.
Two tiny featureless brown worms were my first caecilians ever, found flipping rocks along a waterfall at about 4am.
Image

REPTILIA

Sauria

Agamidae

Aphaniotis fusca (Earless Agamid)
Michiel and Frank came up with this blue-mouthed agamid during our night at the lower foothills of Cameron Highlands. Unfortunately, there was too much other stuff to photograph so I did not bother to make a more decent picture of this one.
Image

Bronchocela cristatella (Green Crested Lizard)
Don’t catch this species if you want good shots – the attractive green turns into awfully drab dark brown as soon as you grab it.

Image
Image

Calotes emma (Forest Crested Lizard)
A handful of this eye-horned lookalike were see at Belum. Does not stretch (much) further south into Malaysia.
Image
Image

Calotes versicolor (Changeable or Oriental Garden Lizard)
One or two skink species possibly aside, this was undoubtedly the most commonly observed diurnal lizard. As ever so often the case with diurnal lizards, it was also observed several times asleep at night.
Image
Image

Draco blanfordii (Blanford’s Gliding or Flying Lizard)
I had hoped to see more Draco species, but seeing one was a dream come true in any case. This is a relatively large species. The male interactions and “flying” are great to observe.

Image


Gonocephalus grandis (Giant Forest Dragon)
Heavy nocturnal rain made this guy possibly venture to lower and thicker branches, so I grabbed the guy in the second picture for the others to see, yet paying for it with its green colouration being ruined…
Image
Image

Gonocephalus robinsonii (Robinson’s Forest Dragon)
A highland endemic and a cool dragon too.
Image
Image

Leiolepis belliana (Butterfly Lizard)
We did not do Peter’s high density spot on the east coast because of the long drive, so we had to settle for shy juveniles in late afternoon. That’s what you get when snakes are the main course, but I’m not complaining.
Image

Gekkonidae

Cyrtodactylus australotitiwangsaensis
Used to be C. pulchellus, before the latter got chopped into 10 pieces. The species name is a valid geographical reference, but pronouncing it is a different ballgame. We saw it at Fraser’s and Genting, both times involving persistent bites.
Image
Image

Cyrtodactylus consobrinus (Peters’ Forest Gecko)
Saw this attractive species a couple of times. This one is from Belum, found a couple of minutes after our blue coral.
Image

Cyrtodactylus quadrivirgatus (Four-striped Forest Gecko)
Rather commonly seen in forests at several locations.

Image
Image

Gehyra mutilata (Stump-toed Gecko)
I guess this is a common species too, but lack of experience makes me doubt how many times we have actually seen it. One of many things to look into in the event of a repeat trip.
Image

Gekko gecko (Tokay Gecko)
Iconic and supposedly common, but we only saw it on Langkawi and at Kuala Nerang.
Image

Gekko monarchus (Spotted House Gecko)
One of the more common species in all sorts of habitats, especially artificial ones.
Image

Gekko smithii (Smith’s Green-eyed Gecko)
Potentially outdated books call this a typical denizen of primary rainforest. Our first was in a rubber plantation, on the paved road. Second and (baby) third where climbing one of our chalets at Tasik Chini. Wonderful eyes.
Image

Hemidactylus brookii (Brook's House Gecko)
Just picked up a juvenile during a not too sober hike following our first tree viper find.

Image
© Michiel Aerts

Hemidactylus craspedotus (Frilly House Gecko)
Somewhat like a poor man’s Ptychozoon, but a very cool species nonetheless.
Image

Hemidactylus frenatus (South Asian House Gecko)
Extremely common on buildings etc.
Image

Hemidactylus platyurus (Flat-tailed House Gecko)
Extremely common on buildings etc.
Image

Hemiphyllodactylus titiwangsaensis (Titiwangsa Slender Gecko)
Not too rare at higher elevation. The sensu stricto (see below) was seen at Cameron Highlands.

Image
Image


Hemiphyllodactylus sp. nov. 1
Related to the previous species, to be described soon. Seen on Fraser’s and at Genting.
Image

Scincidae

Dasia olivacea (Olive Tree Skink)
Caught while active at night in Kuala Nerang. Lovely belly and iris colouration.
Image

Emoia atrocostata (Mangrove Skink)
Only took louse pictures of this species. After dark, we found its pit viper predator in the same Lumut mangrove.
Image

Eutropis multifasciata (Many-lined Sun Skink)
Very common, active at night and by day.
Image
Image

Eutropis rugifera (Rough-scaled Sun Skink)
Found by Frank and Michiel at Kuala Woh.
Image

Lygosoma bowringii (Bowring’s Supple Skink)
Fairly common but (shame, shame) only shot a dead one.
Image

Sphenomorphus praesignis (Blotched Forest Skink)
One of those big-headed guys was caught at Fraser’s Hill. Has a nice orange belly too.
Image

Varanidae

Varanus nebulosus (Clouded Monitor)
Seemed to be the dominant species on the grounds of our Kuala Nerang stay.Image

Varanus salvator (Water Monitor)
Not exactly as often seen as I had expected, but still quite common and certainly widespread. Below is one swimming in a Langkawi mangrove.
Image

Serpentes

Colubridae

Ahaetulla fasciolata (Speckle-headed Vine Snake)
On Pangkor, I had the honour of finding our first vine snake.
Image
Image

Ahaetulla prasina (Oriental Vine Snake)
A quintessential species and a true beauty.
Image
Image
Image

Boiga cynodon (Dog-toothed Cat Snake)
One live specimen only, crossing the road near Tasik Pedu.
Image

Boiga dendrophila (Mangrove Cat Snake)
Another iconic species. We burned a lot of fuel before we finally found this small-sized specimen. I am convinced that its temper fed our luck of finding it still alive on a busy road – it was found curled up and with raised head, as if being mad at the passing cars. Helping Frank to bag it, I earned four or five bloody kisses on my fingers, but it was well worth it.
Image
Image

Boiga drapiezii (White-spotted Cat Snake)
Amazingly long and thin, I didn’t bother too much trying to get a full body shot of this rather nervous but beautiful species. We found quite a few, both dead and alive.
Image

Boiga jaspidea (Jasper Cat Snake)
A single small one at Belum, found a couple of minutes after our blue coral.
Image

Boiga nigriceps (Black-headed Cat Snake)
Modestly coloured for its species, this species was caught under a fire of “what is this?”.
Image
Image

Calamaria schlegeli (Red-headed Reed Snake)
Reed snakes formed a hard to disentangle Gordian nod for us. According to more knowledgeable people the three specimens below all belong to the same highly variable species.
Image
Image
Image

Dendrelaphis caudolineatus (Stripe-tailed Bronzeback Tree Snake)
Bert snatched this pretty little snake which had the honour of becoming the final addition to our species list.
Image

Dendrelaphis pictus (Painted Bronzeback Tree Snake)
The most commonly found Dendrelaphis species.
Image
Image

Dryocalamus subannulatus (Half-banded Bridled Snake)
Two specimens found, both by yours truly. Interestingly, in an attempt to flee this species may launch itself through the air in an attempt to reach an adjacent branch.
Image
Image

Lycodon laoensis (Laos Wolf Snake)
Much to our surprise, this pretty little snake was the only live wolf snake species (and specimen!) we found.
Image

Macrocalamus chanardi (Chan-ard's Mountain Reed Snake)
A single crawling worm found by Patrick on a car park after a nocturnal trail hike.
Image

Oligodon purpurascens (Brown Kukri Snake)
Having no experience with the genus, we first thought it looked a lot like O. baroni, but we were told otherwise by smarter people.
Image

Pseudorabdion longiceps (Dwarf Reed Snake)
As if reed snakes are not already tiny, someone came up with even smaller ones!?
Image

Ptyas fusca (White-bellied Rat Snake)
Frank broke his snake-free spell with this big guy.
Image

Ptyas korros (Javanese Rat Snake)
Very common especially DOR, but I was happy to catch the first one that Peter ever saw alive.
Image
Image

Elapidae

Calliophis bivirgatus (Malayan Blue Coral Snake)
I still cannot believe that after huge luck finding a Lachesis muta on my first trip into South America I got to see the Holy Grail of Asian snakes on my 7th night in Asia… Prettier specimens exist, but it is stunning nevertheless.

Image
Image

Calliophis intestinalis (Malayan Striped Coral Snake)
Supposedly common, but we burned a lot of gas to find one of these. It wasn’t because I stopped the car and asked Michiel to check on a DOR frog that he coincidentally spotted this little gem.
Image
Image

Naja sumatrana (Sumatran Spitting Cobra)
A sad story of lack of experience and failure comes with this species. A couple of minutes before failing to grab a Kopstein’s Bronzeback, we finally got our eyes on a cobra. I slammed the brakes and the puppetry of anxious herpers leaping out of the vehicle started. Frank surely wanted to grab it, but we were unprepared and unfamiliar with how to handle spitters, so the beast slowly slit of the road. Crazy moment and cool to see my first ever cobra, but of course not satisfactory. A couple of tens of kilometres further down the road, we also found a DOR.

Image
© Michiel Aerts

Homalopsidae

Cerberus rynchops (Dog-faced Water Snake)
Bert spotted one on Langkawi that got away, and then he saw another one at Lumut. Michiel earned his brownie points by taking to the murky mangrove water and grabbing the snake.
Image

Enhydris plumbea (Grey Water Snake)
Surprisingly (but perhaps also due to lack of trying), we only found the awful sight of a dead mother with about 10 dead babies coming out of her body or scattered around here.
Image

Homalopsis buccata (Puff-faced Water Snake)
Bert swooped the first one out of a fish pond at Kuala Nerang. Feisty creatures, but I like the head shape and pattern.
Image
Image
Image

Natricidae

Amphiesma sanguineum (Red Mountain Keelback)
A lovely little snake and a highland endemic. Peter found our single specimen at Genting Highlands.
Image

Xenochrophis trianguligerus (Red-sided Keelback Water Snake)
A few of those spotted at the falls on Langkawi and at Kuala Woh.
Image

Pareatidae

Asthenodipsas lasgalenensis (Mirkwood Forest Slug-eating Snake)
The Tolkien etymology of its name (google ‘Lasgalen’) adds to finding this species at night in a fogged up mossy forest at 2000m absl. We found four of them in one night.
Image
Image

Asthenodipsas vertebralis (Mountain Slug-eating Snake)
We only found one, but it’s certainly as cool as the previous species.
Image
Image

Pareas margaritophorus (White-spotted Slug-eating Snake)
Rather common at Tasik Chini, although everything was hard to find overthere.
Image

Pythonidae

Malayopython reticulatus (Reticulated Python)
Michiel spotted this species on a road bank on our first night. Great species to find as a first snake of the trip, and amazing species to find as first wild snake ever for Michiel!
Image

Typhlopidae

Argyrophis muelleri (Müller’s Blind Snake)
After the python, Patrick found a snake of the other end of the size spectrum in the leaf litter in a roadside ditch.
Image

Viperidae

Calloselasma rhodostoma (Malayan Pit Viper)
Although I spotted one in the vegetation on a road bank too, this species is more readily found on the rice paddy roads of Kuala Nerang. Common, if not, very common.
Image

Cryptelytrops purpureomaculatus (Mangrove Pit Viper)
Surprisingly, this abundant species eluded us on Langkawi, but we made up for it in Lumut. Not really the prettiest of viper climbers, so maybe it was good to find this species before the others.
Image
Image

Parias hageni (Hagen’s Pit Viper)
A single specimen of this beauty on a spot where Peter had been successful before.
Image
Image

Popeia fucata (Siamese Peninsula Pit Viper)
Strangely missed at Langkawi, but fairly abundant on Fraser’s Hill. The males carry a red ventrolateral line which makes them particularly attractive (see lower pictures).
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Popeia nebularis (Cameron Highlands Pit Viper)
More plain green than the previous species, also in males. Females seem very similar. Nevertheless, as stunning a species like any other.
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Tropidolaemus wagleri (Wagler’s or Temple Pit Viper)
A true dragon-headed beast, especially the adult females. Relatively common, although it took as until Pangkor before we found our first specimens.
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Epilogue

This was only my second trip to a humid tropical area. Any comparison is undoubtedly flawed. From this trip and Peter’s previous experience, it seems however likely that Peninsular Malaysian climate shows more marked seasonality than the north-eastern lowlands of Peru. Visiting Peru in the ‘dry‘ season, we had rain nearly every day. As an agreeable consequence, any jungle hike provided ample (colourful!) frogs, lizards and invertebrates on the ground and on leaves of the undergrowth to entertain even the most frustrated snake hunter. No such sight in Malaysia during our trip. While this would lead to expect also less predators, i.c. snakes, we found considerably more specimens and species over a comparable period of time. This, however, is most likely related to methodology, group size, and variation in region and altitude. Peru’s Iquitos region of course has (practically) no road cruising opportunities, although our Malayan snakes were mainly found when hiking. More important might be the edge effect of the endless kilometres of surveyed road sides, both on foot and while cruising. The sheer number of species of course also gets a boost when surveying a wider variety of locations/regions/altitudes, in which this Malaysia trip wins.

Without stretching it as far as the pseudoscience I indulged in after my 2013 trip to the Amazon, I could not resist to make a few graphs to summarize our results.

Similar to Peru, species that were found with only a single specimen are most common among frogs and snakes, while less so among lizards (see below).

Image

The below graph shows the growing total number of species observed throughout the trip. While unsteady leaps are of course artefacts due to not staying in the same place the whole time, it is remarkable how the total number of snake species (as in Peru) increases at a slower pace than that of the two other groups and lacking any hint of reaching a temporary or final plateau.

Image

Of course, all three lines come nowhere near to completing the entire species list of the Malayan Peninsula, e.g. we found about a quarter of the snake species.

To conclude, the below graph shows the composition of the encountered snake specimens. The relative importance of road-cruised snakes could be imagined to be higher in different season and/or weather conditions.

Image

Acknowledgements
I am indebted to Kurt (orionmystery, around here) for showing us around for two splendid evenings and to Evan Quah (but also Kurt) for help in identification.
User avatar
JEDDLV
Posts: 69
Joined: April 28th, 2013, 1:54 pm
Location: Las Vegas, Nv.

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by JEDDLV »

Cool stuff, thanks for shareing
User avatar
SurfinHerp
Posts: 653
Joined: October 18th, 2010, 8:55 pm
Location: San Diego, CA
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by SurfinHerp »

Totally awesome trip report Jeroen!!

:beer: :mrgreen: :beer:
User avatar
LouB747
Posts: 1184
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:50 am
Location: Huntington Beach, CA

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by LouB747 »

What a great trip! Some awesome species. I need to head north next time I'm in Singapore! I read somewhere that the blue corals come in a couple of different colorations, with some having almost no blue. Not sure how true that is. Congrats on an awesome trip!!!
User avatar
Hans Breuer (twoton)
Posts: 3230
Joined: June 8th, 2010, 3:19 am
Location: Kuching, Sarawak (Borneo)
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Hans Breuer (twoton) »

Now I need a drink. I'll comment after I've recovered.
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Thanks for the replies!
LouB747 wrote:I read somewhere that the blue corals come in a couple of different colorations, with some having almost no blue.
Interesting... Makes me wonder if it might also be size/age-related or maybe there's a geographical pattern.

Have you found animals as big as ours (see pic below for reference, wasn't going to post it to avoid "don't do this & that" discussion)?

Image

Here's one from a previous trip from the most southern spot we visited - (c) Peter Engelen.

Image
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

x
User avatar
The Real Snake Man
Posts: 405
Joined: June 12th, 2010, 4:08 pm
Location: Pasadena, CA or Mission, TX

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by The Real Snake Man »

Great stuff. The more material I see from Peninsular Malaysia, the more anxiously I await the publication of Dr. Lee Grismer's three up-coming books on the region. Just out of curiosity: do you use Grismer's lizard book to ID your finds?

-Gene
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Thanks, Gene!
The Real Snake Man wrote:The more material I see from Peninsular Malaysia, the more anxiously I await the publication of Dr. Lee Grismer's three up-coming books on the region. Just out of curiosity: do you use Grismer's lizard book to ID your finds?
What are those forthcoming books? Is there any online info on that? I tried googling, but only found this sad stuff (http://www.educatetruth.com/featured/ls ... epartment/).

Well, I forgot the lizard buy it in time prior to the trip, to be honest. Splitting continues like crazy, so a new edition will hopefully come. At that point and/or if I ever go back, I will probably buy it.
User avatar
The Real Snake Man
Posts: 405
Joined: June 12th, 2010, 4:08 pm
Location: Pasadena, CA or Mission, TX

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by The Real Snake Man »

If you email Dr. Grismer directly, he will tell you that there is a second edition of the lizard book coming out, and there is also a snake book and an amphibian book on the way. Should be pretty great.

-Gene
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

The Real Snake Man wrote:If you email Dr. Grismer directly, he will tell you that there is a second edition of the lizard book coming out, and there is also a snake book and an amphibian book on the way. Should be pretty great.
That's good to know, thanks! Especially the latter will fill a major gap, because all I had was old and outdated stuff along with a bunch of peer reviewed papers of more recent date.
NACairns
Posts: 372
Joined: December 30th, 2013, 7:27 am

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by NACairns »

I love the commentary on each species. Spectacular, hard to really say more.
Thank you,
Nick
User avatar
Kelly Mc
Posts: 4529
Joined: October 18th, 2011, 1:03 pm

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Kelly Mc »

there are so many moments and it makes this earth hit me in the chest. As a small token of appreciation I feel compelled to share this first viewings favorite photo, which is the Retic dripping with iridescence.
User avatar
LouB747
Posts: 1184
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 8:50 am
Location: Huntington Beach, CA

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by LouB747 »

Jeroen Speybroeck wrote:Thanks for the replies!
LouB747 wrote:I read somewhere that the blue corals come in a couple of different colorations, with some having almost no blue.
Interesting... Makes me wonder if it might also be size/age-related or maybe there's a geographical pattern.

Have you found animals as big as ours (see pic below for reference, wasn't going to post it to avoid "don't do this & that" discussion)?
Yeah, the first one I found was about the same size as the first one you're holding. Probably 5 to 5 1/2 feet.

Image

I've also found the other end of the spectrum at around 14 inches..

Image

And some in between.

Image

But they all have the same hard edge between the blue and black.

Image

In my small sampling of Singapore Blue Corals (5), they all seem to have that hard edge. But I've seen others posted, like the one posted above, that seem to have a thinner and less distinct blue stripe. I'm guessing it's a geographical difference.
User avatar
mfb
Posts: 275
Joined: June 11th, 2010, 6:06 am
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by mfb »

A wonderful adventure! Thanks for posting. Mike
User avatar
Ruxs
Posts: 373
Joined: November 23rd, 2011, 8:26 am
Location: London, United Kingdom

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Ruxs »

Jeroen Speybroeck wrote:Thanks for the replies!
LouB747 wrote:I read somewhere that the blue corals come in a couple of different colorations, with some having almost no blue.
Interesting... Makes me wonder if it might also be size/age-related or maybe there's a geographical pattern.

Have you found animals as big as ours (see pic below for reference, wasn't going to post it to avoid "don't do this & that" discussion)?

Image
Although your specimen looks more like the Thai variety (i.e. north of the sundaic region), I reckon that it's just to do with size and individual specimen variation. It's certainly cool looking, though.

Brilliant trip overall, I saw some of Peter's pics on Facebook but seeing them here with a bit of narrative and nice photography is awesome. 8 people seems like too much of a hassle to me but at least it's reciprocated in the finds.
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Thanks for the replies, Lou & Ruxs.
Ruxs wrote:8 people seems like too much of a hassle to me but at least it's reciprocated in the finds.
Exactly my idea. I have been a bit fed up with larger groups we did 10 yrs ago (12 or even 15 people at times), to the point that I prefer 4 or 6. Yet, this group grew a bit larger than I would have chosen, but with the dry conditions herping solo (to name the other extreme) would just have been so frustrating at certain spots (e.g. Chini) that it would become nearly pointless to burn fuel and energy. If you want 38 species of snakes in 3 weeks, you need numbers, I guess, so in the end, I'm not complaining ;)
dendrelaphis
Posts: 172
Joined: February 28th, 2014, 12:10 am

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by dendrelaphis »

Hi Jeroen, holy shit man!, that's very wonderful stuff! I just returned from Thailand and thought I had found some nice snakes but it's nothing compared to this amazing set of species. Love it!
dendrelaphis
Posts: 172
Joined: February 28th, 2014, 12:10 am

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by dendrelaphis »

By the way, can you tell me (us) specifically what snakes you encountered on Pangkor? I'm really curious to see what species you found over there as I have surveyed that Island twice!
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Thanks, dendrelaphis!

On Pangkor, we spent 2 nights (more precisely, half of the team only spent 1) and found five snakes belonging to three species - Ahaetulla fasciolata (1), Boiga drapiezii (2) and Tropidolaemus wagleri (2).
User avatar
The Real Snake Man
Posts: 405
Joined: June 12th, 2010, 4:08 pm
Location: Pasadena, CA or Mission, TX

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by The Real Snake Man »

With reference to the discussion about variations in color pattern among C. bivirgatus, it should be noted that there are three subspecies, including a Borneo variety that has four white stripes down its back (like the DOR in this post):

http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/vie ... =2&t=12247

-Gene
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

The Real Snake Man wrote:With reference to the discussion about variations in color pattern among C. bivirgatus, it should be noted that there are three subspecies, including a Borneo variety that has four white stripes down its back (like the DOR in this post):

http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/vie ... =2&t=12247
Yes, of course. There's even a significantly less flat one in the report Ruxs made of his Borneo trip last year.
http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/vie ... calliophis
User avatar
orionmystery
Posts: 674
Joined: December 26th, 2012, 11:48 pm
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by orionmystery »

Great post, Jeroen.

My pleasure. You guys have been to like 7 or 8 more herping spots than me. And I live here :P
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Just shout if you ever need any info - we'd be more than happy to return the favor, obviously.
User avatar
krisbell
Posts: 220
Joined: September 12th, 2010, 2:20 pm
Location: Jersey, UK
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by krisbell »

Epic trip and epic post Jeroen, you guys saw more in your one holiday than I have ever seen in many, many trips to Asia. Also, I wish you would include vague region data beside all your pics purely and simply to help me plan my next trip!
User avatar
Jeroen Speybroeck
Posts: 826
Joined: June 29th, 2011, 1:56 am
Location: Belgium
Contact:

Re: trip report - Peninsular Malaysia april 2015

Post by Jeroen Speybroeck »

Thanks, Kris!

This should help - the same stuff in a chronological order.
https://plus.google.com/photos/10956940 ... 8950451809
Post Reply