2024

Every year, Stockholms Herpetological Association organizes a conference on a cruise ship that is headed towards Åland and sails back the next day. This year the topic of the conference was the Western Palearctic, which seemed right up our alley. Our friends Didrik and Otto invited Laura and me to attend and give two talks on Iran and Turkey. We didn't have to think long about the opportunity and only two days after returning from Oman, I was in Stockholm. The conference was one of the nicest I have ever attended. Well organized, interesting talks, very nice people, great food and all that with a bit of holiday vibes on a cruise ship. And of course very nice to see old and new friends alike! And that wasn't all because when you are in Sweden as a biologist, you of course want to see a Moose. Our new friend Stefan was the best possible host and prior to the conference he opened his home to us. We spent two nights at his place where we enjoyed his hospitality, drove around the whole day searching for Cervidae and enjoyed fabulous meals (moose meatballs!). We searched one entire day from sunrise to sunset, scanning the fields trying to find a Moose (Alces alces). Fallow Deer (Dama dama), Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) and Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus) were easily found, but despite our efforts there was no sign of a Moose. We even saw some nice birds such as White-tailed Eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) and Whooper Swans (Cygnus cygnus). When the sun was as good as gone, we decided to do one last lap around some fields where they have been seen recently and this was a very good call. Just when we were about to give up, a big shadow came strutting out of the forest and onto the fields. Finally a Moose (Alces alces)!

Together with herping buddies Niklas, Tabea, Lennart and Judith, Laura and I visited one of the most beautiful places along the Isar. Quite close to our favourite swimming spot we searched for reptiles and immediately found many Sand Lizards (Lacerta agilis) running around. Lennart and Judith struck gold and found three beautifully patterned Adders (Vipera berus) basking in the grass along the river. Two of these were immature individuals, but Judith also found a stunning adult male which had a very unique pattern.

Together with a group of Laura's colleagues we did a hike through the Alps. We saw a surprising amount of herpetofauna such as Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis), Viviparous Lizard (Zootoca vivipara), Grass Snake (Natrix natrix), Alpine Salamander (Salamandra atra), Alpine Newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris), Common Toad (Bufo bufo) and Yellow-bellied Toad (Bombina variegata). However, the highlight came in the shape of a mammal as we spotted a whole group of Alpine Ibex (Capra ibex) resting in the shade. 

Shortly after our Central Asia trip, Laura and I flew to Denmark to attend a wedding of one of Laura's best friends. As the wedding venue was close to Billund, I couldn't miss the opportunity to visit Legoland. So we had one entire day in Legoland, celebrated the wedding on the next day and also reserved a day for some herping. The Fire-bellied Toad (Bombina bombina) is a species we don't see so often, so were very happy to see some, along with a few Viviparous Lizards (Zootoca vivipara), Water Frogs (Pelophylax kl. esculentus) and Agile Frogs (Rana dalmatina). Our visit to this beautiful country was way too short, but we made the most of it!

Laura and I went exploring in a place we haven't been to in a long time. It was beautiful spring weather and it was great seeing all the plants in full bloom again. The Marsh Frogs (Pelophylax ridibundus) were calling and the Sand Lizards (Lacerta agilis) were running around in search of a mate. In a small ditch we spotted a small Grass Snake (Natrix natrix), but the stars of the day were four beautiful Aesculapian Snakes (Zamenis longissimus).

After seeing many shed skins the previous weekend, Laura and I knew that the reproduction for the Adders is about to commence. We spent the whole day in our new local patch to try and see some males fighting over a female or maybe a copulating couple. It was hot and dry so we didn't see many Adders, let alone some behaviour. But when the sun was setting and more clouds came in, so did the Adders. We started seeing some individuals moving into basking positions and when we saw two males close to each other we decided to wait a bit more. Just when we were about to go, the melanistic male moved towards the patterned individual and they started doing their ritual fighting. It lasted 5 whole seconds, but it was sure cool to see! The pictures are somehow less impressive, so I hope we get lucky again...

This weekend Laura and I explored a location hinted to us by a colleague of Laura, who said it is a great place to see the mass flowering of Spring Snowflake (Leucojum vernum). We could definitely confirm this and saw vast fields of these beautiful flowers along the stream. Moreover, the moors along the stream proved to be very interesting habitat for Adders (Vipera berus) and Viviparous Lizards (Zootoca vivipara). As it was quite warm on Saturday, most reptiles proved to be shy or basking cryptically. So we returned on Sunday for another smaller round with our friend Manfred. Weather conditions were much more favourable for finding reptiles and in a small isolated patch of heather we found a grand total of 10 Adders in this beautiful location. Most of them males in a great variety of patterns and colours, but we even found the first subadult female of the year.

A colleague of Laura is a great nature lover, and so are his wife and children. They were all keen on seeing some snakes in the wild so Laura and I took them to a place we know quite well. In the early morning sun it was still quite cold, so we knew the chances were high that the Adders (Vipera berus) would bask quite openly. This proved to be correct and we saw a total of 5 Adders. They were all black and all basking out in the open. We even saw an individual we already know for several years. Always nice to see our old acquaintance Mr. Gaga again. 

Although it is always a great pleasure revisiting our usual locations, there is still much to explore in the vicinity of Munich. Last year we already visited a beautiful bog south of Munich, but couldn't find any reptiles. This year we decided to try again during more favourable weather circumstances. After searching for a long, long time I found our first Adder (Vipera berus) of the year, after which Laura found a second one. Many Viviparous Lizards (Zootoca vivipara) were also enjoying the sun. Finally spring again!