An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Agamas, geckos, lizards, monitors and skinks indigenous to South Africa.

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An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Chameleon Company » Wed Sep 04, 2013 5:09 pm

Good day all.

Here is a quiz for the ID guys.

Hints:
1 - Found in Sasolburg, Free State north.
2 - Can only be either of two agama species.
3 - The black colour is due to stress, BUT may also be natural colouration ;)
4 - The shedding makes it more difficult ;)

Image

Image

Image

Enjoy!
2:2 Pseudaspis cana
1:2 Dasypeltis scabra

And yes they are all on permit.
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby JJward7 » Wed Sep 04, 2013 6:35 pm

Looks like a ground agama I think
Every good story seems to begin with a snake.
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby wors143 » Thu Sep 05, 2013 8:13 am

BJ, Definitely a BV. On second thought looks more like a LBJ....

Little Black Jobbie

He he he he . nice specimen
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Jamster » Thu Sep 05, 2013 8:25 am

Agama atra?
1.0-reticulated python (Ripcord)
1.1-burmese pythons
5.5-brown house snakes
1.0-taiwanese ratsnake
3.8-BCI
1.1-corn snakes
1.2-rhombic skaapstekers
1.0-yellow rat snake
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Westley Price » Thu Sep 05, 2013 8:33 am

I see what you're doing; you cannot ID the species and now pretend is some kind of quiz ;)

This is a tricky one, especially since I'm too lazy to pick up my field guide, haha.

I usually use the locality, pattern of enlarged tubercles on the dorsum and the shape of the tympanic opening to accurately ID these.

I cannot imagine it to be Agama aculeata distanti due to the lack of enlarged tubercles and the fact that there are no enlarged scales around the tympanic opening.

Based on that, I will go out on a limb and say this is a female Acanthocercus atricollis, Southern Tree Agama. It's quite a distance out of their known range, but who cares, haha.
"I am dying by inches from not having anybody to talk to about insects." - Charles Darwin
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Chameleon Company » Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:31 am

Good day Westley.

I am stuck between A. Atra and A. Aculeata distanti.

I got a rough idea after painfully looking at these pics for a day. So decided to post them up on the forum and see what others think.

I would personally go with A. Atra for numerous reasons.

Everybody loves an ID challenge!
2:2 Pseudaspis cana
1:2 Dasypeltis scabra

And yes they are all on permit.
Chameleon Company
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Location: West Rand

Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Westley Price » Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:35 am

Chameleon Company wrote:Everybody loves an ID challenge!


Amen!

I doubt it is A. a. distanti, but A. atra is a possibility, sub-adult female.
"I am dying by inches from not having anybody to talk to about insects." - Charles Darwin
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Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Chameleon Company » Thu Sep 05, 2013 11:05 am

For interests sake this female was observed laying eggs prior to me catch her a day later. It took 7 hours for her to complete the nest.

This female and her male live on old rotting logs for the past year.
2:2 Pseudaspis cana
1:2 Dasypeltis scabra

And yes they are all on permit.
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Location: West Rand

Re: An ID for the experts. Quiz!

Postby Reynard » Thu Sep 05, 2013 3:51 pm

I had something that looked exactly like this years ago..... I was 15 I think.

Awesome little critter. Just don't let friends with no experience handle a busy animal. She fell and died :(
1.2 Red Tail Boas

It's my life. Let me live it.
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