Bushland Reptiles and Frogs
South-east Australia
17/04/19
A dry sclerophyll valley in NSW. No bats in the cave unfortunately! I check every one I come across.
Australia's sclerophyll forests are highly diverse and have many endemic species, despite seeming dry and growing in low fertility soils. The perfect time to find reptiles is after a few cold and rainy days, when the air is still cool but the sunlight is strong and warm. The reptiles then all come out to bask and are much easier to find. Otherwise, a day of lifting up rocks and kicking around in leaf litter also usually turns up a fair few animals.
Pseudonaja textilis
Eastern brown snake
This is the world's second most venomous snake with a whole sleuth of damaging compounds in its venom causing effects from internal haemorrhaging to neurotoxicity. It is responsible for the majority of snake bite fatalities in Australia.
Amphibolurus muricatus
Jacky lizard
A semi-aboreal species that generally inhabits dry sclerophyll and heath areas. Normally very camouflaged, they have a bright yellow or orange mouth and tongue which they flash when threatened.
Amphibolurus muricatus
Jacky lizard
A very annoyed adult dragon that I found one night. I think he would have liked nothing better than to get a hold of my finger.
Rankinia diemensis
Mountain dragon
A small dragon found in forests of the South-eastern highlands. It is the only agamid native to Tasmania. They can change their colours for camouflage, ranging from bright red to grey.
Cyclodomorphus michaeli
Mainland she-oak skink
A very long skink that looks like it's on the evolutionary path to losing legs. It is shy and secretive, spending almost all of its time hiding in leaf litter.
Pseudophryne coriacea
Red-backed toadlet
A tiny ground-dwelling frog that lives in leaf litter. Each individual toadlet has its own unique belly markings, much like a fingerprint!
Litoria ewingii
Southern brown tree frog
A small frog that doesn't need to constantly be around water. They are good hunters of flying insects, which make up most of their diet. They are most common in the southern-most areas of Australia.
Amalosia lesueurii
Leseur's velvet gecko
An very soft, small gecko that can be found under rocks in sandstone escarpment areas mainly in Eastern NSW. It is often confused with the similar Amalosia (previously Oedura) species in other states.
Tiliqua scinciodes
Eastern blue-tongue lizard
A large friendly skink that is often kept as a pet. They can grow to 60cm in length and are omnivores, with a particular love for slower moving insects like snails. When startled they will hiss and stick out their bright blue tongue.
Cacophis squamulosus
Golden-crowned Snake
I find snakes fascinating! Keeping a relatively safe distance here, I could pick it up without actually bothering it. They feed at night, eating frogs and lizards while they sleep.
Looking over the Grose Valley in the Blue Mountains, NSW. This is at an altitude of about 1000m in the Great Dividing Range.