by BushSnake » Mon Jul 20, 2009 8:51 am
The Swartberg is absolutely amazing! Thanks for posting this.
I don't really know what lizzard that black one is, but one question should reveal the answer: how far from a rock crack was it found? Crag lizzards (Pseudocordylus) virtually NEVER wander off from their shelters, whereas skinks (Trachylepis) often wander into more open areas where you can "chase them down". A full body photo would also help. My first reaction was also a T.sulcata, but I didn't know the pitch black ones are found as far south as Prince Albert. I thought they were more central karoo (central Northern Cape). It just looks a bit too smooth for a Pseudocordylus (In my non-expert opinion of course).
I presume the girdle lizzard is a Cape girdle lizzard (Cordylus cordylus)?
We must remember that a photograph can hold just as much as we put into it, and no one has ever approached the full possibilities of the medium - Ansel Adams