Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

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DiogoFF
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Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by DiogoFF »

I am portuguese and the herpetofauna here is not as diverse as in the USA but we have some interesting reptiles and amphibians. In Portugal there are only 2 water snake species:

Natrix Natrix - Grass Snake
Natrix Maura - Viperine Water Snake

Here are pics of some Snakes I found and two Salamanders (Salamandra Salamandra and Pleurodeles Waltl):

Natrix Maura:


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Natrix Natrix:

This was a small juvenile Snake

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Salamandra SalamandraS:

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Pleurodeles Waltl:

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Thanks, please coment and add photos that you find interesting.
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Bryan Hamilton
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by Bryan Hamilton »

Cool stuff. I've always wanted to see a Natrix natrix in the wild.
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monklet
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by monklet »

Always great to see post from other countries. Don't see enough of Portugal here in the U.S., herps or otherwise. Seems like a beautiful country. I'd love to see more habitat and scenic pics ...as well as any more herps of course.

The Pleurodeles Waltl appears especially interesting. Anymore pics of that species?
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Jeremiah_Easter
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by Jeremiah_Easter »

The Pleurodeles Waltl appears especially interesting. Anymore pics of that species?
yes please.
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DiogoFF
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by DiogoFF »

Thaks for commenting the topic.
Here' another pic (did you know that Pleuroedeles Waltl is the ibggest Salamanderspecies in Europe?):

Image
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DiogoFF
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by DiogoFF »

Here are some pictures I tought youd like
(These were taken by my brother).
We found this Natrix Maura eating a trout in a small stream.The trout was still moving when the snake pulled it ito te bushes in the riverbank:

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Another pic of that Natrix Natrix
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And some more Natrix Mauras:
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joeysgreen
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by joeysgreen »

Excellent stuff Diogo,
I keep P.walti in captivity, and heard they get as big as the one in your hand, but wow! Amazing!

The snakes are super cool, the in situ feeding photos are my favorite. Some tips on photographing your caught specimens include letting them crawl on a nice rock or log while gently holding the tail out of camera view. You can also cover the snake with your hand or hat until it calms down and begins to feel a little more secure. Have your camera ready, and then slowly remove the cover.
I think you'll really be pleased with the results you get, and the snakes might be a little less stressed after the ordeal.

Have fun, and I look forward to more pictures from you. Portugal is in interesting place :)

Ian
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froghaven
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by froghaven »

DiogoFF wrote:Thaks for commenting the topic.
Here' another pic (did you know that Pleuroedeles Waltl is the ibggest Salamanderspecies in Europe?):

Image

love this shot showing the size of this monster. very cool! thanks for posting!
mikemike
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by mikemike »

Nice man. Not sure I recall seeing any posts from Portugal before.
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mrichardson
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by mrichardson »

Nice post. I've only seen Pleuroedeles waltl in murky water (via flash light) so good to see some good close-up pictures. I look forward to more posts from your country.
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MichaelCravens
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by MichaelCravens »

Very neat snake, Thanks!

Michael
MuayThaipan
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by MuayThaipan »

That newt was so damned cool I did some research ( I have obsession with any amphibian over 9in long) and came across this bit of info on wikipedia.
Pleurodeles waltl has been studied in space on at least six missions. The first Iberian Ribbed Newts in space may have been in 1985 on board Bion 7.[3] The ten newts shared their journey with two Rhesus Macaques and ten rats, in an otherwise crewless Soviet Cosmos satellite. In 1992, Bion 10[4][5] also carried the newts on board, as did Bion 11[6] in 1996.
NEWTS IN SPACEEEEEEEEEE, lol how awesome is that?
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Martti Niskanen
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by Martti Niskanen »

The feeding pictures are great. Whereabouts on Portugal have the photos been taken?

-Martti
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DiogoFF
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by DiogoFF »

Central inside Portugal, near "Pampilhosa da Serra". In river "Zêzere".
Google map it.
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Martti Niskanen
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Re: Portuguese Water Snakes (pics)

Post by Martti Niskanen »

Thanks for the info. I may visit Portugal next year and will be after Salamandra. Going to the south to Serra de Monchique, though.

Cheers.

Martti
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