Lowland Copperhead Snake and a Waterfall

I came across this Lowland Copperhead snake (Austrelaps superbus) the other day at the Tamar Wetlands in Tasmania.  This is not related to the American snake of similar name. It is a  venomous snake of the Elapidae family that could (and have) kill an adult human. However, they will generally remain non aggressive as long as you don't interfere with them.    They can grow up to 4 1/2 feet. This one was at least 3 1/2 feet (maybe a little longer).  They are generally found in wet areas, creeks, swamps etc,  and feed on frogs, mice, larger insects, lizards etc.  It will even cannibalise smaller copperheads. Aside from Tasmania, they can also be found in other parts of south-eastern Australia.

 ( Copperhead Snake - Click the play button)

We also visited a waterfall recently. Delaney Falls, also known as Preston falls,  are located about 25km's south of Ulverstone in Tasmania. The wide angle lens was back at the car and the GoPro battery was dead so unfortunately I did not get a shot with the entire falls top to bottom. There is always a next time  :-)

  (Preston Falls - Click the play button)

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Blotched Blue-tongue Lizards (Tiliqua nigrolutea)

Several Blotched Blue-tongue Lizards (Tiliqua nigrolutea) have been seen in the backyard over the last few weeks. You'll notice one of the lizards has a large tick on it. This should fall off naturally soon. These are the largest lizards we have in Tasmania and can reach just over half a metre or 550mm. (21.7 inches).  The Blotched blue-tongue is found in the south-east of Australia and Tasmania. On the mainland it is usually found at higher elevations but here in Tassie it is found from sea level up to around 750m. They are omnivorous, feeding on insects, snails, flowers, and fruit. In a backyard situation they will be attracted by pet food and your strawberry patch.

Thank You!
Since September I've gone from about 12 subscribers on my YouTube channel to 102. Thank you all very much for your support and encouragement. If you have not yet subscribed please consider doing so, as not all of my videos appear on this blog. If you are logged in with your google account you simply need to use the Youtube/Subscribe button below.

I hope you enjoy the video.

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White's Skink (Liopholis whitii) Catches Slater

With spring warming up, the reptiles in the backyard are becoming more active.   I've recorded 8 species in the backyard over the last 10 years; 6 lizards and 2 snakes. The lizard below is known as  White's Skink (Liopholis whitii)

White's Skink lives in a network of  burrows between rocks or fallen timber. It grows to around 90mm head to vent so at least double that if you include the tail. They live in family groups. They are said to be an ambush predator although I have seen them stalk their prey over short distances.

White's Skink lurking among the rocks.

In the video below, I was fortunate in capturing the moment this lizard caught and ate a slater (also known as a woodlouse, pill bug, roly-poly and many other names). You will notice that after killing the slater it drops it and then after a little while proceeds to eat it. I thought the lizard had accidentally  dropped the slater. However, the next day I filmed another White's skink and it did exactly the same thing, kill, drop, wait, and then eat. Now I'm wondering if they are actually making sure it is dead before eating it. Any thoughts?

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A Visit to the Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve

I recently visited the Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve just north of Launceston. The Tamar Estuary at 70km in length is said to be the largest in Australia and it drains Tasmania's largest catchment area which covers 18% of the state. The reserve itself protects around 60 hectares of mud flats, reeds beds, coastal paperbark forest and small islands.

Some of our small party were a little less enthusiastic about entering because as soon as we got out of the car they spied a snake slithering off the path and into the reeds. Unfortunately I missed seeing it. It was likely to be a Lowland copperhead, Austrelaps superbusas, as that is the only snake that has been recorded in the reserve.

Between the entrance and the interpretation centre you pass through an area of freshwater lagoon. Apparently this is a good place for spotting the rare Green and Gold Frog, Litoria raniformis. On sunnier days they sit basking on the bank but we "dipped out" as it seems the frogs had "dipped in". The photo below is of a captive specimen.

Green and Gold Frog - Litoria raniformis

The interpretation centre has a lot of information on the wetlands ecology and also has a spotting scope set up for watching the birds.

Interpretation Centre

About half a kilometre down the boardwalk there is a side track that takes you through some coastal paperbark forest and then to a small bird hide.



Along the main boardwalk you pass though large areas of reed beds (Phragmites australis) where I spotted a Little Grassbird, Megalurus gramineus.

Reed Beds

There are three species of skink in the reserve. Along the boardwalks we spotted two metallic skinks, Niveoscincus metallicus, and also the rare Glossy Grass Skink, Pseudemoia rawlinsoni. This species is found in other parts of south-eastern Australia too but it is rare here in Tasmania only being known from a few sites mostly in the Launceston area.

Glossy Grass Skink - Pseudemoia rawlinsoni

You also cross over a series of bridges spanning drainage channels. At low tide these areas reveal extensive mud flats.

Bridge

Drainage Channel

Some of the 53 Black Swans, Cygnus atratus, we saw at the reserve

Great Egret - Ardea modesta

Black-fronted Dotterel - Elseyornis melanops


Juvenile Welcome Swallow - Hirundo neoxena at the side of the boardwalk
(Only about 60cm from lens)

At the end of the walk you cross over to Tamar Island (1.5kms from the entrance). The island has a long history of European occupation and is dominated by exotic trees and shrubs. The birds I saw here were, not surprisingly, mostly introduced species such as Greenfinch and Goldfinch but there were also some natives like Silvereyes, Zosterops lateralis and Superb Fairtywrens, Malurus cyaneus.

This was a fairly rushed trip and much of the time was spent covering the area as opposed to sitting and watching for birds. We only saw 22 of of the 63 birds that have been recorded there. My intention was mostly to spy out the land to see if it was worth visiting. The answer was an emphatic yes.

List of birds seen:

Black Swan (Cygnus atratus)
Australian Shelduck (Tadorna tadornoides)
Pacific Black Duck (Anas superciliosa)
Australasian Shoveler (Anas rhynchotis)
Chestnut Teal (Anas castanea)
Eastern Great Egret (Ardea modesta)
White-faced Heron (Egretta novaehollandiae)
Swamp Harrier (Circus approximans)
Eastern Australian Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio melanotus)
Pied Oystercatcher (Haematopus longirostris)
Masked Lapwing (Vanellus miles)
Black-fronted Dotterel (Elseyornis melanops)
Silver Gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae)
Pacific Gull (Larus pacificus)
Superb Fairywren (Malurus cyaneus)
Forest Raven (Corvus tasmanicus tasmanicus)
Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxena)
Little Grassbird (Megalurus gramineus)
Silvereye (Zosterops lateralis)
Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
European Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris)
European Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)

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Ticks on Blue-tongue Lizard

(Edited on 21st Dec 2009 to reflect new information)

This Blotched blue-tongue Lizard (Tiliqua nigrolutea) was found here in my backyard. Closer inspection showed it to be covered in ticks, mostly at the back of the neck as well as in the axilla or armpit.

One fully gorged tick was actually causing the lizard discomfort (judging by the way it was walking) so we decided to remove them. Blue-tongue lizards are quite commonly parasitised by ticks. In fact some species of tick only feed on reptiles. Of the nine ticks we removed there were three distinct types. I had originally thought that these were three separate species but thanks to the helpful advice from Dr Bruce Halliday and Prof. Michael Bull I now know that they are all the same. They are the Southern Reptile Tick, Bothriocroton hydrosauri formerly known as Aponomma hydrosauri. There were more ticks in the lizards ears but I did not want to risk causing damage as their ear drums are close to the surface. A local herpetologist recommended putting vegetable oil on the ticks which should cut off their air supply and get them to drop off. This might be worth a try if your squeamish but it did not work for me. I've since been told:

"It is quite ok to physically pull the ticks from the ear. There may be a little bleeding but it is temporary, and probably far more effective than any oil treatment. Actually the ticks do little damage to the lizard unless there is an excessive load, and indeed they are just as much a component of the biodiversity as the lizards, so it is probably best just to leave the natural interaction intact. The fully engorged female tick you found in the axilla of the arm, may have caused a little discomfort, but they only remain in that state for a very short period of time before detaching to lay eggs."

The following taxonomy is based on the "Australian Faunal Directory" web site.

• Phylum: Arthropoda
  
• Class: Arachnida
  
• Superorder: Acarina
  
• Order: Parasitiformes
  
• Suborder: Mesostigmata
  
• Superfamily: Ixodoidea
  
  
  
  • Family Argasidae (Soft ticks)
    
  • Family Ixodidae (Hard Ticks)
    
  
  

You can clearly see the scutellum (shield like plate at the back of the head) in two of my ticks photos below which is a feature of Hard Ticks ( Ixodidae). I had thought Tick C below was of the Argasidae as there seemed to be no obvious scutellum. This turned out to be a case of not seeing the forest from the trees as apparently in the male the scutellum covers the whole body.

(Click on photos to enlarge)

Blotched blue-tongue Lizard (Tiliqua nigrolutea)

A fully gorged tick in the the axilla as well a a smaller one of a different species below it.

Ticks (Bothriocroton hydrosauri )under the scales on the back of the lizards neck.

Tick A - An engorged female (Bothriocroton hydrosauri )

Tick B - A female in the unengorged state (Bothriocroton hydrosauri )

Tick C - A male (Bothriocroton hydrosauri )
these do not become engorged like the females do

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Backyard Visitor

Well I'm supposed to be taking a break from blogging but I thought I'd post a photo of my latest backyard visitor; The Tiger snake - Notechis scutatus. We've been in this house for two years and two months and this is the first one I've spotted here. It was on the fence just a few metres from the back door.

I was in the veggie garden hilling up my tatties at the time when I heard a Fairy wren going nuts about something. Looked up and noticed two Fairywrens and a couple of House Sparrows having a go at the snake. The fence is nearly 7 foot high and I always considered it to be snake proof. What I overlooked was that the other side of the fence is covered in mesh enabling the snake to climb up. It was trying to get onto a wattle tree on my side. It soon gave up and went to ground in the neighbouring block but soon after made two more attempts to climb various points along the fence. Further up the back I don't have a fence so no doubt it eventually found it's way over to our side but I lost sight of it. Now everyone is refusing to feed the chooks and ducks or collect the eggs :-)

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

#1 - Tiger snake - Notechis scutatus

#2 - Tiger snake - Notechis scutatus (cropped from first shot)

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A Two Tailed Lizard

..... A Curious Side Effect of Tail Shedding

We found a two tailed lizard in the car port yesterday. It's a Metallic Skink.- Niveoscincus metallicus.

Tail shedding is a common tactic of many lizards which increases their chance of escape from predators. It seems in this case that either the tail has not shed properly or else it has suffered some sort of injury. Either way the regeneration process has been triggered but the original tail has healed. The end result is the curious two tailed lizard shown below. It's not all that unusual as I have seen others over the years but it's always interesting none the less.

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

#1 - A two tailed Metallic Skink.- Niveoscincus metallicus.

#2 - Detail of the tail(s)

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Blotched blue-tongue Lizard

.....Tiliqua nigrolutea

On Sunday my wife came across a Blotched Bluetongue Lizard on the road so she brought it back home where we released it in the bush up behind our house. Of course I first took the opportunity to get some photos.

The Blotched blue-tongue is found in the south-east of Australia and Tasmania. On the mainland it is usually found at higher elevations but here in Tassie it is found from sea level up to around 750m. They are omnivorous, feeding on insects, snails, flowers, and fruit. In a backyard situation they will be attracted by pet food and your strawberry patch.

These are the largest lizards in Tasmania. Head to vent they grow to around 30cm or up to about 45cm including the tail. This one was 42cm. I had one in the yard last year which I reckon would have been at least half a metre. I didn't realise at the time that it was above average so I wish I had measured it more accurately.

You may see from the photos that this one has an injured rear right foot, perhaps from a previous close shave with the traffic. At least if this one appears on my block again in future I'll be able to recognise it.

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

#1 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue

#2 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue

#3 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue

#4 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue

#5 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue - Note the scaly eye lids


#6 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue - Head Scales


#7 - Tiliqua nigrolutea - Blotched blue-tongue - Previous injury

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Three-lined Skink

.....Bassiana duperreyi GRAY, 1838
(Syn: Acritoscincus duperreyi — Wells & Wellington 1984)

Yesterday I came across this Three-lined Skink up the hill in the backyard. Snout to vent, it measured 65mm (they can reach 80mm) and the total length was 165mm. These lizards are found mainly in the north and east of the state where they prefer dry forest or coastal heath. They will shelter among grass tussocks, leaf litter or under rocks. They feed on insects, spiders and other invertebrates. Eggs are laid communally in a small cavity under a rock or log.

Do not read on if you are prone to headaches :-)

For the sake of accuracy, I will now explain a potential problem with my identification. Of course, with only 17 lizard species in Tasmania you'd think it would be easy to identify a skink. Well apparently not. My gut feeling was that this was the Three-lined Skink and I still believe this to be the case. However using a dichotomous key I ran into a problem. Have a look at the suture between the rostral and frontonasal scales. This suture separates the two nasal scales. The suture appears to me to be relatively narrow compared to the width of the frontal scale. In fact I measured it on the computer at only 50% the width of the frontal scale. This would point to Niveoscincus sp. For the Genus Bassiana the suture should be relatively broad. So, there are several possibilities:

1. The key may have a bug in it.
2. I may be interpreting the key incorrectly.
3. My skink may vary from the norm.

On the other hand, the Tasmanian National Parks site clearly states, that "the frontoparietal scales are fused into a single shield on the Three-lined skink, distinguishing it from other striped skinks found in northern and eastern Tasmania". So, that on it's own says I have a Three-lined Skink. The orange colouration on the throat also matches this species as does the general appearance and position of the stripes.

I have drawn a diagram which I have included below to show some of the major head scales.

So if you are still reading this then no doubt you have a serious interest in lizards. Perhaps you are even in a position to clarify things for me. If so, then any help would be greatly appreciated.

(Click Photos or Diagrams to Enlarge)

Three-lined Skink - Bassiana duperreyi - Somethings watching me

Three-lined Skink - Bassiana duperreyi - colouration under throat

Three-lined Skink - Bassiana duperreyi - Dorsal view

Three-lined Skink - Bassiana duperreyi - Lateral view

Three-lined Skink - Bassiana duperreyi - Head Scales


Names of some of the head scales

References:

• Hutchinson, Swain, Driessen, 2001 - Snakes and Lizards of Tasmania - DPIW & University of Tasmania
• Parks and Wildlife, Tasmania, 2008 - Head Shields of the Three-Lined Skink , Website
• Wilson & Knowles, 1988 - Australian Reptiles - Cornstalk Publishing

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Here be Dragons

.....Mountain dragons - Rankinia diemensis (J.E. Gray, 1841)


While up the back of the block today I came upon a dragon. No not the fire breathing kind; just the humble Mountain Dragon, Rankinia diemensis. Of Tasmania's 17 lizard species this is the only one which is not a skink. It belongs to the family Agamidae and it has the most southerly distribution of all the lizards in this family..

You can get quite close to a Mountain Dragon if you move slowly. If they run they will only go a short distance and then stop again, pretending you can't see them. It works too as sometimes you can't see them because they blend in so well among leaves and sticks. I did manage to get close enough to one today to actually stroke it and it did not run.

While following it around trying to get a decent shot I suddenly noticed, while looking through the lens, that there was in fact a pair of them. A breeding pair? I don't know, you be the judge. It is said that a female is larger than a male but has a proportionally smaller head.

They are found in the north and east of Tasmania, in dry forest and heathland as these areas are more open to the sun. Their diet consists of ants and other small invertebrates. At my place Mountain Dragons are quite common (there are certainly enough ants for them) although these are the first I've seen this spring.

In late spring and early summer they lay from 2 to 9 small eggs (15mm) within a short burrow.

(Click Photos to Enlarge)

Mountain Dragon - Rankinia diemensis


Mountain Dragon - Rankinia diemensis

Mountain Dragons - Rankinia diemensis

Mountain Dragons - Rankinia diemensis

Mountain Dragons - Rankinia diemensis

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More White's Skinks (Lizards)

A few weeks ago I posted about White's Skink. (Click for earlier post) Since then I have found another place in the backyard where they have made a series of burrows. This one was enjoying the sunshine on the path only about a foot away from one of the burrow entrances. Lying flat on the ground I was able to get close enough to use my 100mm macro lens. The first sudden movement I made and it it was back into the burrow in a flash.

The mention of sunshine should make it obvious that these shots were not taken today as I don't think the rain has stopped once. They were in fact taken last Tuesday (16th. Sep)

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

#1 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

#2 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

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Tasmanian Tree Skink

.....Niveoscincus pretiosus


This lizard of the family Scincidae was first decribed by English poet and naturalist, Arthur William Edgar O'Shaughnessy in 1874. (see below for a sample of his poetry) The latin name pretiosus can mean costly/precious or extravagant. When I see names like this I always wonder what was in the mind of the namer. Perhaps it was costly because, as I have done in the past, he dropped his camera or other expensive equipment while studying the species ;-) More likely it was seen to be extravagant because they will often have a orange/pink/red colouration around the vent and the underside of the tail.

The Tasmanian Tree Skink is endemic to Tasmania and some of it's off shore islands. As the common name suggests they can be found on among the crevices and furrows of trees, particularly dead trees or dead limbs.. They have been found as high as 15m. They will also inhabit old logs or even rocks.

The lizards in my photos below were found at Guide Falls. Along the side of the track is an old retaining wall built from wooden sleepers. The sleepers are very old and rotten and full of cracks and crevices. To the skinks of course these are just like any other fallen log on the forest floor. They are often found in large groups and this is certainly the case at Guide Falls where I have often seen dozens of them basking in the sun. As you approach they will quickly disappear into some nook or cranny but if you sit still they will slowly make there way back out.

The first three photos were taken last week. The last one was taken in October 2007.

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

Tasmanian Tree Skink - Niveoscincus pretiosus

Tasmanian Tree Skink - Niveoscincus pretiosus

Tasmanian Tree Skink - Niveoscincus pretiosus

Tasmanian Tree Skinks - Niveoscincus pretiosus

Some poetic lines from O'Shaughnessy's book Music and Moonlight (1874):

We are the music makers,

And we are the dreamers of dreams,

Wandering by lone sea-breakers,

And sitting by desolate streams;—

World-losers and world-forsakers,

On whom the pale moon gleams:

Yet we are the movers and shakers

Of the world for ever, it seems.

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White's Skink

...Egernia whitii

White's Skink, Egernia whitii, was formally named by Lacépède in 1804. Both the scientific name and common name commemorate John White. He was the chief surgeon on the first fleet. White was also an amateur naturalist and just as well for there was no official naturalist assigned to the first fleet voyage.

The species is found from southern Queensland through to South Australia. In Tasmania it is found in the north and east as well as the Bass Straight islands. The Tasmanian lizards are a little smaller than their mainland counterparts, the longest recorded being 220mm including the tail. The body length (head to vent) is usually around 90mm. They are slow to mature (4 years) and have been recorded as living up to 8 years.

They are ambush predators feeding primarily on a range of small invertebrates but primarily ants. They will also take some plant material.

The back of my block is a north facing hill with plenty of rocks and logs. This is ideal habitat for White's Skink. They live in colonies and form a network of burrows between the aforementioned rocks and logs. Over the last two years I've spotted several locations where they reside. If I walk up the path I often see them basking on a rock. Oh, and how do I know if they are basking or waiting in ambush? Well if I look through the binoculars I can see their eyes are closed but they are not in a deep sleep as when I get a little nearer they quickly dart back within their burrow.

The first two photos were taken today. In photo #1the skink is facing straight toward me and I wanted a shot of the side of it's head so I flicked a small stone just in front of it and it immediately turned towards it allowing me to take photo #2. Photo #3 was taken last week and the remaining two are from last year. You'll notice there is some variation in their appearance but they always have a whitish line above their top lip.

(Click Photos to Enlarge)

#1 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii


#2 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

#3 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

#4 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

#5 - White's Skink - Egernia whitii

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