Baby snakes and a tortoise

Baby snakes and a tortoise

Postby Chris89 » Sun Apr 19, 2015 1:51 pm

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This aggro little Snoutie was hanging out on someones stoep. Smallest cobra i've ever seen, about 300mm..
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Gauteng boomslang!! This was a big suprise. Right up in my area, not sure how i've missed them all these years, they must be rare here? Prey items and suitable habitat seem to be plentiful. Sadly a DOR. 300mm. 1500m asl, open savanna, tall grasses with scattered Acacia, Protea, Burkea etc. Two long-winded questions: How widely and how quickly do they disperse after hatching(are there likely more hatchlings in the immediate vicinity)? Is temperature or habitat suitability the major limiting factor on boomslang distribution on the highveld (are they likely to be more abundant lower down the slope and on warmer slopes or in more heavily wooded areas)? I'm keen to find some more hehe.
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Another surprising find. perhaps a translocation. Little leopard tortoise
Chris89
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Re: Baby snakes and a tortoise

Postby Westley Price » Mon Apr 20, 2015 8:52 am

Nice finds, Chris

I wouldnt beat myself up if I were you about not finding the Boomslang earlier. They are masters of camouflage and move with incredible speeds and incredible silence through the shrubs, so it is VERY easy to miss them.
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Re: Baby snakes and a tortoise

Postby Chris89 » Mon Apr 20, 2015 10:32 am

Thanks Westley
Boomslangs are incredible animals. In the Graaff-reinet area I saw 4 or 5 adults in a single year without looking for them, granted the vegetation there is more open and most of them were encountered moving on the ground at speed. They are as fast and graceful on the ground as they are in the branches! Awesome to see out in the bush. I wonder what colour the males are up here? Males in the karoo were dull green.
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Re: Baby snakes and a tortoise

Postby scalybunni » Thu Apr 23, 2015 1:28 pm

These are great finds! I especially love finding tortoises.
The kiss originated when the first male reptile licked the first female reptile, implying in a subtle, complimentary way that she was as succulent as the small reptile he had for dinner the night before.
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