Been searching around the Wet Tropics region
(Townsville-Tully) and also the Central-North coast for reptiles and
amphibians. Not many new things in the way of amphibians, in fact none (it
is the dry season after all!) First of all, the Eungella-Whitsunday area...
I took my cousin Steph to Eungella for a day or so
to find some animals. We found a few reptiles and some birds.
Emerald Ground Dove:
The first was a baby Velvet Gecko (Oedura
monilis.) This was at Finch Hatton, at the base of the hills.
Then, we went to the top of the hills to Eungella
itself. I managed to find an adult gecko of the same species.
The next day we managed to find a platypus at
Broken River. He was too far away for my 300mm lens.
On the way back we photographed fireflies:
Also found Harvestmen. These are Arachnids, like
scorpions, spiders and ticks. They are however harmless.
They scavenge on the forest floor at night.
On the way back, we also found a large Carpet
Python (Morelia spilota.) Not pictured.
And a Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis)
A dead blind snake (Ramphotyphlops sp) was
found on the road, freshly run over, maybe minutes before we found it.
Upon returning to the Whitsundays we went looking
for lizards. Monitors (goannas) were seen but too fast to photograph. We did
find some skinks,
two species of Carlia (one caught and
photographed!)
Carlia rhomboidialis:
...And one
Saproscincus hannahae:
They bite:
I took my friends, Ron and Jase out to the Wet
Tropics. One night at approx 1000m ASL at Paluma and one night in the
lowland jungle at Tully.
Fire on the way, just out of Townsville
The first night, on the way up the hill we found a
Bandy Bandy (Vermicella annulata) crossing the road. These gorgeous
snakes are found in just about all habitats in Australia. There are four
species according to some authors. They are instantly recogniseable by their
vivid black and white stripes. From the Cobra family (Elapidae)
they are front-fanged and venemous, but not considered dangerous- like most
elapids. They are not known to be the type of snake that attempts to
bite often. Basically inoffensive, they thrash around when provoked. Only
small, this one was 45cm or so, they hunt at night and feed only on Blind
Snakes (Ramphotyphlops spp.) Speaking of which, I was yet to find a
live Blind Snake.
Next stop was Tully. This town holds the record for
the wettest in Australia, with over 7m of rain a year! It sure is bouncing
back very well from Cyclone Larry. The rainforest is patching up fast.
Patrolling the roads, we found two Scrub Pythons (Morelia
kinghornii.) These were once thought to be the same as the New Guinea
species (M. amethystina,) and was originally called the Amethystine
Python, but nobody could pronounce that name. These are the biggest snakes
in Australia, currently rated at the fourth largest on the planet. This was
2.5m long. I got a photo before moving him off the road to safety:
A Large Tailed Nightjar (Caprimulgus macrurus)
on the road:
Movement on the road got my attention. I slammed on
the brakes and caught this Blind Snake (Ramphotyphlops sp.) This is
the first live one I have found. So far its species name is undetermined.
Blind snakes are incapable of biting, and live undeground feeding on ants,
termites etc. They are basically tubular in shape, and their eyes are
covered in scales. They are thought to only be capable of seeing light and
dark. The tail of some species ends in a sharp spur, thought to be used for
leverage when burrowing. This was a biggish one, at 30cm. These things are
near impossible to hold. The scales are almost friction-free, and the snake
is strong. They dig the spur into hands and fingers, and let out a strange
smell. This is what the Bandy Bandy eats.
We also found a Jungle Carpet Python (Morelia
spilota cheynei)
Tully Rainforest:
All the best
-Nathan Litjens
