Posted: 24 Apr 2010
Hi, here is a summary of a herping trip I recently took with my partner Suzanne and friend Ben, we had many days planned in the sunshine with target locations and species but the weather and volcanic ash were against us.
Saturday 10th April
This was our first time to Spain so most of the species seen would be "lifers", we were staying in an area called Murcia which is a dry arid part of Spain and renting a house in Sucina to act as a base for our excursions.When we arrived it was cold and had been raining but the sun soon broke through and we headed out towards a large lake at Torremendo. We soon spotted a DOR snake, it was a Horseshoe whip snake Hemorrhois hippocrepis, a sad sight but at least we were in the right area.We arrived at the lake and soon found some Iberian water frogs Pelophylax perezi
around the waters edge. I then saw a large Ocellated lizard Timon lepidus but was unable to get a clear picture through the undergrowth before it disapeared down a rabbit burrow. We then searched a large area finding nothing but Scolapendra centipedes which we were careful not to touch.
We then moved to the top of the lake and saw many Large Psammodrommus lizards Psammodromus algirius
 ,
Spanish psammodromus Psammodromus hispanicus
and several more Ocellated lizards darting into cover.On the return journey we found a DOR Horseshoe whip snake and Ocellated lizard, our planned evening trip was cancelled as we all fell asleep watching TV :zzz:
Sunday 11th April
Todays trip was a visit to a large lake near Fortuna, a location I had noticed on Google earth with a small road leading down to the water. En route we stopped at a piece of rough ground that just looked right, we found a few Large Psammodromus and while I was looking at a strange centipede (ID anyone?)
I noticed a snakes tail disappear into a bush. I lifted a few rocks and found a Horseshoe whip snake,
we took some photos, shed some blood and released it. They are very defensive and will readily bite as I was to find out later in the holiday. We drove onto the lake but found the small road was blocked by a gate house bristling with cameras etc so we drove on to a suggested location. Here we found just a Spanish wall lizard Podarcis hispanicus and a scorpion Buthus occitanus
 .
Leaving here we stopped at a small stream finding a few Large Psammodromus and a few Iberian water frogs
Monday 12th April
Alovely sunny day so we headed south to the National park at Calblanque an area of mixed dunes,beaches and scrub covered hills.We split up and soon found where mosquitos go on holiday, we were all repeatedly bitten and stopping to take a picture was very uncomfortable.Ben soon found a Moorish gecko Tarentola mauritanica
and a Turkish gecko Hemidactylus turcicus minus its tail,
despite turning over what felt like half of Spain we found liitle else at this location apart from a couple of scorpions and a few more Large Psammodromus. We moved further along the park and stopped at a ruined house to feed some more mosquitos, turning a stone here I found a juvenile False smooth snake Macropotodon brevis,
a few hasty shots a then onto the next part by the beach. Here we saw many track of Ocellated lizards in the sand but only a very brief glimpse of one hiding in cover, there were many other lizards running about and we saw Large and Spanish Psammodromus and a few Spiny footed lizards Acanthodactylus erythrurus.
Later that evening as we stopped for a beer in a local bar, the barman told us of a local lane where he had recently seen 3 DOR snakes. We slowly drove down hoping at least to be able to identify the species and found a large dried up Montpellier snake Malpolon monspsessulanus,
a target species , it looked a large specimen and would have been fun trying to have photographed it. Driving back up the lane I noticed some large stone and so stopped to flip them, first stone , a beautiful pair of young Ladder snakes, Rhinechis scalaris one was very calm and easily posed, the other less so.
An evening visit produced nothing but we could hear Iberian water frogs calling from some water resevoirs.
Tuesday 13th April
We awoke to find it raining and then a phone call from a fellow Brit herper also in Spain cancelled our planned Chameleon hunt. We stocked up on food and checked an area on the edge of town where we had seen some rubbish dumped, this produced nothing but we could hear Iberian water frogs calling from someones garden and I am sure that I heard a Midwife toad calling (ssp unknown). This was strange as according to a range map they were not supposed to be this far south, I have heard them calling in France and that is what I heard.
After lunch we headed down to the Chameleon location and searched among the bushes finding only mosquitos and condoms! It was a cold windy day and not ideal conditions but we had to make use of the time available and still search.
We moved from here and tried to find a couple of locations suggested to us, we failed to locate access to the first one and at the second one Ben turned some stones to reveal an urn containig someones ashes!!
Wednesday 14th April
Another wet cold day and the herping was going very slow. We visited a large gorge just outside the town of Murcia, we ahd noticed a sign asking drivers to beware of reptiles and Amphibians and had spoken to someone from a local herp group, he suggested walking up the gorge. We found some beautiful pools and turned over hundreds of stones but found only a Large Psammodromus hidine beneath a piece of plastic.
Driving 40 miles north we arrived at a piece of land below a large dam, the weather was against us once more and all I found was a pair of Ocellated lizard skeletons in an old water tank and a young Viperine snake Natrix maura beneath an old sleeping bag
Thursday 15th April
Our planned amphibian trip was cancelled due to us having hangovers and feeling rather delicate :roll:
After lunch we drove back to Torrremendo to try and get a photo of an Ocellated lizard, we parked up and walked the opposite side of the road where I noticed a small pile of rubbish. Lifting a sheet of plastic I flushed 3 Turkish geckos and noticed a large Horseshoe whip snake slide under a stone, I thought it would stay there and so took some pics of one of the geckos.
When I had finished I moved a few rocks to find it had slid down a rabbits burrow, I dug this out a bit as it was shallow and called for Suzanne to come over with the other camera which can take short video films. I reached in and extracted a very bitey large Horseshoe whip snake.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TV4D_bTbgE
We placed it under an arched roof tile to try and calm it for a few photos, we managed to get a few but then it struck again and managed to get my finger down it's throat. This of couse meant that I had to try and prise it's jaws open and then push my finger further down to escape the teeth. Suzanne took great delight in taking that photo!
Returning to the lake side we saw several Ocellated lizards and one stood still long enough for me to take a few pictures although admittedly on the wrong camera setting.
We also saw Spanish and Large psammodromus and a large Iberian water frog. On the journey home we stopped at a pile of old furniture etc and I pulled back an old carpet to reveal a pair of large Ocellated lizards, we were very surprised to see each other and needless to say, they escaped.
Friday 16th April
We had a decision to make today as it was our last day in the field, south for Spur thighed tortoises Testudo graeca or north west for amphibians.The weather decided and so we headed north west towards Caravacca de la Cruz, after a long drive we pulled up next to some resevoirs. After climbing the gate we found some Iberian water frogs hiding along the waters edge and then Ben lifted a plastic drum to find an adult Viperine snake.
At one end of the resevoir we found many tadpoles (sp unkown). Moving from here we then headed to another dam and parked up in the rain, walking down to the water I flipped a stone to find a young Viperine snake. From here we could here many Iberian water frogs calling and we found many small ones hiding under stones and logs,
I also found a small Spanish terrapin Mauremys leprosa hiding among some plants.
Walking around the other side of the water and turning many stones looking for toads etc I eventually found a juvenile Montpellier snakee and another Viperine under the next stone!
Towards the end of the lake we moved slightly higher up the bank and I lifted a stone to find a female Betic midwife toad Ayletes dickhilleni shortly followed by the finding of a male with eggs. A few minutes later Ben shouted to come over and he had found 3 beneath one stone which cheered him up.
We then started a wet walk back to the car, a shout of snake from behind me made me turn to see Ben holding a beautiful blue/green Grass snake Natrix n astreptophora that he had found under a plastic sheet.
Back at the car we found a very cold and wet Large Psammodromus
Species seen:
Spanish terrapin.........1
Betic midwife toad......5
Iberian water frog......50+
Viperine snake...........5
False smooth snake....1
Horseshoe whip snake.2..DOR 5
Grass snake..............1
Ladder snake............2
Montpellier snake......1..DOR 1
Ocellated lizard.........20
Large pssamodromus..100+
Spanish pssamodromus.20 +
Spiny footed lizard......10
Moorish gecko...........1
Turkish gecko............4
Spanish wall lizard......2
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