last weeks field herping and fishing trip

[Daniel]

Hi,

last week I went field herping in the "Duvenstedter Brook" near Hamburg/Germany. This is a large nature reserve.

It was a sunny day without clouds and temperatures from round about 23 to 27 °C.

Just look, what I did find that day:

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00714.JPG

Zootoca vivipara

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00762.JPG

Anguis fragilis

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00776.JPG

Natrix natrix natrix baby

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00719.JPG

Natrix natrix natrix

[Daniel]

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00782.JPG

Vipera berus

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/DSC00743.JPG

Vipera berus melanistic


Two days befor this field herping trip I went fishing with a friend of mine. This was the result of waking up at 2:30 in the morning and throwing out the bait at 5:00 in the morning ;)

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//502/medium/Daniel16_1TN.jpg

Me and my first carpet ever. This guy weighed round about 17 pounds or 8,5 Kg.

Best wishes,

Daniel

[mikm]

Wow ... what a great trip Daniel !!!

much thanks for sharing :) ...

[Daniel]

Hey,

this was really a nice field herping trip. The pictures only show a small selection of the nicest animals I could find that day. The black european adder ist extremly rare and I was really very happy to find such a beautiful animal.

And sorry for the carpet ;) It has to be just a carp ;)

Best wishes,

Daniel

[drache]

wow, Daniel
that melanistic Kreuzotter is fantastic
I was happy just to see the regular one
you Glückspilz
the carp's not bad either

[Stefan-A]

The melanistic adders aren't that rare up here in the north. :) Finnish adders are normally very dark even when they aren't melanistic.

[Cazador]

Daniel,
Looks like a couple of great days... nice temperatures, plenty of herps, bright sunshine, and a big, fat carp! Did it croak likea frog when you took it out of the water :D? Thanks for sharing your pictures. Do you think birds are eating the tails off those lizards or what?

Stefan,
The same principle applies with garters... the further North one goes, the more common melanistic garters become. It's said to improve their heat absorption, but that would be counter productive in warmer, Southern locales.

Rick

[Stefan-A]

So I've heard. There was a theory about them being able to leave the den earlier, too (mating earlier, feeding for a longer period), but I think some study shot that theory down fairly recently.

[adamanteus]

Nice photos Daniel. Looks like you had a good day out.

[Cazador]

I'm not surprised that a theory suggesting they could leave the den earlier and mate earlier would be shot down. Any organism that's unable to synchronize mating activity (in terms of location and timing) in a genus with such a limited reproductive period (particularly as one travels further north) is doomed to have impaired, not enhanced, reproduction. Moreover, black snakes in a winter's den wouldn't get the benefits of absorbing more solar energy, so again, it seems like a flawed theory.

Compared to wild-type individuals, melanistics are more likely to enjoy the benefits of faster digestive rates, higher metabolic rate, better immunity, enhanced growth rates, and possibly greater activity levels earlier on sunny days. These attributes would provide a selective advantage in Northern locales.

[Sid]

Nice photos Daniel. Looks like had some really good days on the field trips.

I went up to the North Carolina coast the last part of last week and had some nice finds myself. Got home and my computer had crashed!! As soon as I'm finished restoring everything I'll post photos for everyone.

Sid

[Stefan-A]

I admit that I might remember incorrectly, but I think they indeed found that it didn't result in any reproductive advantage. Courting, they didn't have a greater success rate.

The adders usually start leaving their dens before the snow has thawed. Outside the den, it could have some benefit, since the snakes could absorb heat more efficiently. As the angle of incidence changes during the year, they could theoretically become active earlier than the lighter colored ones.

[Thamnophis]

Lucky devil. You found some amazing animals.
Hope to find some of these on my holidays in the Czech republic this year.

[adamanteus]

I have the opportunity to spend some time in Krakow this year. I'm not so familiar with Polish herpetofauna, but if I go I'll do some reading-up first and hopefully come back with some interesting photos to show you.

[GarterGuy]

Nice pics and finds there Daniel. I'm hoping on some good stuff myself this weekend.:D
Roy

[Snaky]

Very nice findings Daniel! Must've been a nice trip :)