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| Part IV: Kakadu |
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We set out for Kakadu with some
hope of finding the elusive Oenpelli python. There
were some confirmed reports of some herpers that had
spotted one along one of the popular tourist hikes.
With a description of where the snake was found, we
set off as early in the morning as we could muster. We
got there just as the sun was coming up. Despite
looking for a few hours, we found no Oenpelli. Then
the heat intensified. I have never experienced heat of
that magnitude. Searching through the rocks was
unbearable, and soon, all of us were retreating to
shaded shelters inside the cracks and crevices of the
escarpment. After later talking to one person who had
spent over 3000 hours searching for an Oenpelli python
with no luck, we felt a little better about our 2 hour
failure. One could really see how such a large snake could remain so elusive. Some of the crevices descended for meters into the cool core of the rock. We imagined the underground cisterns with available water. Plentiful signs of prey were to be found throughout the area, and a snake would not have to go far to find a suitably sized wallaby. It is no wonder this ghostly python is not frequently observed. What a great place to live, as the views and rock art were fantastic! If I were a python, I would probably choose a place like this as well. Since it was blazing hot, we didn't see much in the way of reptiles, so we enjoyed the scenery and the rock art of the national park. Nourlangie rock was amazing and there was lots to see in the area. Below are some photos of the area and some poor photos of the rock art. We also saw a camouflaged mantis on our way down from the Nourlangie lookout. What an amazing spot! |
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We did see a few geckos
after sunset, including the very beautiful Jeweled
velvet gecko (Oedura
gemmata). Unfortunately, my camera was acting
up on the trip, so the photos aren't the best and a
bit overexposed. It was definitely hard to capture the
beauty of such a colorful gecko. I was happy to see
this little gem. |
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As we were leaving Nourlangie, another night
tiger (Boiga irregularis) was found crossing the road.
We had to stop to get him off the road. What a
beautiful snake. It also started to rain a little. I
talked the guys into doing a bit of road cruising
along road that was close to the rock outcroppings in
the hopes of finding an escarpment childrens python,
but everyone was pretty tired. I talked them into one
pass, but we didn't see anything. |
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| The ride home was fairly uneventful, aside from a few DORs, including a beautiful Pseudechis species. At first we believed it to be a Weigel's brown snake, but later discovered it was an undescribed species that would soon be described. It was a beautiful specimen with faint red banding on an olive base color. We also stopped for a few geckos on the road, many of which were gravid. Not sure on their ID, though. |
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The next day we spent time at the
Darwin Wildlife park and road cruised in the area
after dark. An early find was this fresh DOR northern
death adder (Acanthophis
praelongus). It was a beautiful specimen and
it was sad to find it in this condition. Otherwise the
night was fairly uneventful reptile wise, although we
did get followed by a blackhawk helicopter as we drove
along. We must have looked pretty funny stopping every
once in a while to pile out of the vehicle with
headlamps on, only to run back a few meters and stop
on the road. They followed us for a while and then
figured they had rattled us sufficiently and returned
to base. Fun stuff. |
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