SW QLD Herping Trip Part 1 - Dragons & Monitors

[Mattsnake]

Over the past 10 days, 5290km and 72 cans of solo - Dan (DanTheMan) and myself have been on a whirlwind herping trip throughout South-Western Queensland. Due to flash flooding the trip didn't really go to plan as the original idea was to go out to Windorah than to Birdsville and into the Strzlecki Desert, however the Cooper Creek was flooded just 20km east of Windorah so that was as far west as we got due to the bridge not being invented out that way yet.
We found a huge amount of different species (the majority of them being new to both of us) so there are way to many pictures to post in one thread so I'll break them up into sections and throw a few random pics into each.

Enjoy.

Found this little one basking on the road on the very first night, I think it a Nobbi Dragon Amphibolurus nobbi but please correct me if I'm wrong.


Only saw two Eastern Bearded Dragons Pogona barbata the whole trip and they were both juvies found at night.


Little Corella's Cacatua pastinator and Sulpur-Crested Cockatoo's Cacatua galerita were in plague numbers in some areas, especially around the wheat fields where they formed huge mixed flocks. The squawking was enough to drive anyone insane!


Only saw one lace monitor Varanus varius late one afternoon strolling through our campsite.




Also only managed to find one live Yellow-Spotted Monitor Varanus panoptes but there were a lot of road kills found. It like most monitors was extremely wary and didn't let us get close at all.




Central Netted Dragons Ctenophorus nuchalis were very common on the roads that stretched through the red rocky habitat like the one shown. They were very hard to approach and would retreat to a burrow at high speed. We came across one basking on the road that was a vibrant almost fluoro orange but of course it was too quick for us to get photos!








Burn's Dragons Amphibolurus burnsi were the most abundant dragons out west and during the day they were found basking all over the roads, on stumps and small trees but usually close to water where they would retreat to once disturbed and not re-surface for some time. The majority of females also appeared to be gravid.

Female




Males were much harder to approach than females.


Sand Monitors Varanus gouldii were very common in some areas and the fastest lizards I have ever seen! They were also a very common monitor to see DOR.




Another major highlight for me on this trip was this Pebble Earless Dragon Tympanocryptis cephalus. I never realised just how small these guys are!




And a picture to give an idea of just how tiny it was, can you see the dragon?


Wedge-tailed Eagles Aquila audax were fairly common soaring high in the sky or perched in trees on the edge of the road but would usually take flight once we got within a hundred metres of them. However we were lucky enough to get fairly close to this one that was more focused on eating it's road-kill emu dinner than esacping us.




This was the sight that dropped out hearts into out stomachs and caused the trip to take a major turn. This is where the Cooper Creek crosses the road just 20km east of Windorah, it was deep deep underwater and our only way from where we were into South Australia - No other option but to turn around.


Painted Dragons Ctenophorus pictus were only found in these sand dunes and were very quick and difficult to photograph as they ran between the grass tussocks and pieces of wood.




It took along time before we finally came across a Central Bearded Dragon Pogona vitticeps but once we did find the first one everywhere we looked they were there!






We decided to take a detour and check out the Granite Belt on the way home and what an incredible place is it.
Juvenile Jacky Dragons Amphibolurus muricatus were prolific in the Granite Belt and were found basking on every second rock we looked at, however we never once saw an adult.


The landscape the dragons frequented.


The lizard highlight for the trip for me was this Black-Headed Monitor Varanus tristis. They are a favourite herp of mine and to see one in the wild was spectacular.




I think I have covered it for the dragon and monitor species, I will post up the snakes, geckoes, skinks, legless lizards and frogs soon. I'm sure Dan will have a report up soon.

Thanks.

[phoebe]

Awesome photos! How you managed to spot that Pebble Earless Dragon I do not know!

[FAY]

Great pics....thanks for sharing Matt.

[Aussie Python Lover]

Awesome pics matt & dan, I would love to go herpin but I wouldnt know where to go as Im not really a qlder im from darwin...Got any tips matt?

[dukyboi]

awsome

[boxhedjr]

where is the peble dragon

[Tayla152girl]

That pebble earless dragon is tiny i just spent ages looking at the photo of the ground where he was, i saw nothing! lol how hard was it for you guys to spot that little guy?

[redbellybite]

Good stuff guys ......shoulda done the old bushy trick and cut a few emu steaks off for your own supper

[Mattsnake]

Thanks everybody.

Awesome pics matt & dan, I would love to go herpin but I wouldnt know where to go as Im not really a qlder im from darwin...Got any tips matt?

Thanks.
The only advice I can offer is drive and look around or go for walks through the bush, I'm not a QLDer either but its the same anywhere you go. I'd love to go to darwin herping!

Good stuff guys ......shoulda done the old bushy trick and cut a few emu steaks off for your own supper

Thanks RBB.
I forgot to mention that we bathed in flood waters and lived off road kill ...the latter may or may not be true.

[longirostris]

Great shots Matt. Love the dragons. I would love to do that trip one day myself. The Pebble Mimmicking Dragon in your picture is a baby/hatchling. I have these in my collection and currently have hatchlings in another species of earless and I can tell you that as hatchies they are lucky to be 20-25 millimeters total body length (TBL), tail included. They are tiny and require a fair amount of attention to get them raised to adults. My adults are two and a half to three inches long TBL. An exceptionally big one would be 4 inches long. Did you see any T.intima or T.tetraporophora or D. winneckei or C. isolepis gularis all of which are found in that area just west of Windorah? What was the weather like? Was it blisteringly hot or not too bad?

[Mattsnake]

Great shots Matt. Love the dragons. I would love to do that trip one day myself. The Pebble Mimmicking Dragon in your picture is a baby/hatchling. I have these in my collection and currently have hatchlings in another species of earless and I can tell you that as hatchies they are lucky to be 20-25 millimeters total body length (TBL), tail included. They are tiny and require a fair amount of attention to get them raised to adults. My adults are two and a half to three inches long TBL. An exceptionally big one would be 4 inches long. Did you see any T.intima or T.tetraporophora or D. winneckei or C. isolepis gularis all of which are found in that area just west of Windorah? What was the weather like? Was it blisteringly hot or not too bad?

We were talking after we found it about if anyone had this species in their collection. We didn't get west of Windorah due to the flood waters so only saw the species that I have posted.
The weather was pretty damn hot but much more bareable than the humid weather we're used to on the coast...anything over about 15 degrees is too hot for me anyway! Haha

[DanTheMan]

anything over about 15 degrees is too hot for me anyway! Haha

I recomend a tablespoon of cement, that should harden you up!

[anntay]

great pics