Milos 2014

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kevinb
Posts: 56
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 7:53 am
Location: Stroud , UK

Milos 2014

Post by kevinb »

After a series of potential disasters and reprieves we finally arrived at our apartment in Pollonia , Milos. After unpacking and eating we had a walk around town looking for geckos, I quickly found a Turkish gecko Hemidactylus turcicus on a wall but did not bother to photograph it as I thought we would see plenty more.
Saturday 23rd May
An early start as the sun rose and we headed to the west coast to check where a rocky stream comes down to the sea, we had only got as far as the edge of town where we were saddened to find a freshly killed Milos viper Macrovipera schweizeri on the road. It looked as though it had been hit just before we arrived.
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We were very sad to find this, but it proved that the vipers were present, I walked along the roadside hoping to see another but was pleased to find my first Milos wall lizard Podarcis milensis and my first Kotschy's gecko Mediodactylus kotschyi on a wall catching the morning sun.

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We were to become VERY familiar with these 2 species over the next week. 15 minutes later we found our second viper dead on the road, this one looking as though it had been hit during the night.

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We stopped occasionally en route finding more H turcicus,P milensis and M kotschyi, the stream was dried up and the day was getting hot so we spent the day snorkeling.

Sunday 25th May
Up at dawn to avoid the heat, a quick breakfast and heading west again along the dirt tracks that pass as roads here. First stop was a lake where we found many P milensis and M kotschyi and no terrapins despite wading through the shallows.

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We carried on up into the hills to check a mountain stream but once again this had completely dried up but we had good views from the top.
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We then dropped down to check a location for the Milos frog Pelophylax ssp very kindly given to us, it was one of those sites that brings a smile to my face as I have seen it in other reports.

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Luckily this visit did not involve a net or finding a dead goat with my feet ;) (Matt)Once again the day got too hot for herping and so we retreated to a beach. On the way home a Green lizard Lacerta trilineata crossed the road in front of the car but was too fast to photograph.
Monday 26th May
A torchlight search was planned this morning and so we headed out into the dark and drove up some dirt tracks near the coast hoping to see some vipers but once again found nothing. We then searched around the lake area at first light but only succeeded in feeding a few mosquitoes and seeing a few M kotschyi. I took Suzanne back to the apartment and went out on my own for a couple of hours and checked around the site of the first dead viper and then further up the hill into a rocky bushy area but once again found only P milensis and M kotschyi.
After a couple of hours sleep we headed to Plaka to visit the roman theatre but it was closed to the public, there were several carved blocks of marble left by the side of the track that looked as though they should be in a museum.

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As we visited the site there were several Eleanora's falcons Falco eleonorae overhead
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Leaving Plaka we drove the white beach at Sarakinko passing another dead viper on the track

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This is a beautiful beach with blindingly white cliff walls that have been sculpted into a moonscape by wind and rain and of course more P milensis running around

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I am starting to get worried about not finding vipers :(

Tuesday 27th May
Today was our 3rd wedding anniversary and so it started with the question "What would you like to do today darling"? Now then, do I say what I would really like to do or make something up to please her? The matter was taken out of my hands when she kindly said " Why don't you go out on your own for a few hours and then we can go out together later when it gets hot". :o :D :D
I returned to an area I had previously visited where there was a small area of fresh water but this contained nothing so I walked up the valley there for a while finding the usual mix of lizards plus another L trilineata that escaped.
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Moving from here to another previously visited location I walked through rushes hoping to find a Balkan terrapin Mauremys rivulata and then stepped out onto some rocks and almost put my foot on a Milos viper Macrovipera schweizeri.You have no idea how happy I was :D :D :D . Many photos were taken.

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Wednesday 28th May
Today was spent on a boat trip sailing around Milos on a yacht, it was a great day in good company with good food and lots of drinks. The captain was a young man and very knowledgeable about the history and geology of this island but it all changed when he started to talks about snakes. He looked horrified when I told him that I had been photographing a Milos viper, he claimed it was one of the deadliest snakes in the world and then went on to tell the other passengers that the venom is used to make heart pills and that the government fits the snakes with microchips and then drops them from helicopters into the national park so they can be collected in the spring. They have now crossbred and are large, black and now have horns. This proved too much for Suzanne who promptly collapsed in drunken laughter and mocked him for the rest of the trip.

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We visited an abandoned sulphur mine along the coast where I managed to find 4 M kotschyi
to the delight of the other passengers. Later we passed some stacks of Basalt columns.

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Thursday 29th May
Our last on the island and so we headed east to a pond, we got slightly lost along the dirt tracks but after a detour we finally arrived at a good looking pond where I hoped to find a Milos grass snake Natrix natrix schweizeri. It was nearly 9am and it was getting hot so we parked the car and walked down towards the water, imagine my surprise when I saw this on the track. As we started to photograph it lots of frogs started to call.

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I had seen with my first Milos viper how nervous they can be so was surprised how calm this one seemed to be, Suzanne told me not to get to close with the camera without my gloves which she would fetch from the car. As she left me the snake took off down the path with me trying to gently block it's escape with my shoe. As I waved it in front of the snake it struck and left a drop of venom on my shoe, it then coiled up and remained calm while I took a few more pictures and then let it go on it's way.

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Pausing briefly to photograph another P milensis we went to Adamas for a meal and a storm blew up which resulted in the restaurant owners madly running round trying to throw ropes over the roof to stop it blowing away. A large ferry was struggling against the wind and was being blown sideways across the bay

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We returned to the apartment only to find that we had visited the wrong pond and so braving the weather we set out again with new directions. We soon found the pond but by now it was raining and the pond had steep sides and was unsuitable for herping, I did however find some Mole crickets beneath pieces of wood, it was the first time I had seen them and trying to take pictures of this fast moving cricket in the rain proved almost impossible

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I visited another pond but this also proved difficult to approach and so we went back to the pond where I had found the viper, by now it was raining heavily and Suzanne decided to stay in the car. I walked round the pond seeing a few frogs and the tail end of a small viper disappear into a small bush when I noticed a large ball of clay that had dried out and cracked into sections, I pulled out one section and revealed a Cat snake Telescopus fallax.

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We missed a few species but were very happy to have seen the Milos viper and had a great holiday
Many thanks to Matt Wilson for his help
User avatar
John Martin
Posts: 515
Joined: June 9th, 2010, 10:57 pm
Location: North end of Lake Okeechobee, Florida

Re: Milos 2014

Post by John Martin »

Great stuff all around! :beer: Now there's a location rarely (if ever) posted, and what a stunningly beautiful place at that. I can't believe those ancient marble blocks are just sitting there, as if "dumped". I love your "snake proof" shoes. :lol: In closing, EVERY herping male should have a wife like yours... :thumb:
Marcuslucassen
Posts: 8
Joined: June 5th, 2014, 3:07 am
Location: Denmark

Re: Milos 2014

Post by Marcuslucassen »

Really nice pictures.
I really the Viper :D
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PrimitiveTim
Posts: 154
Joined: September 8th, 2013, 9:05 pm
Location: Florida
Contact:

Re: Milos 2014

Post by PrimitiveTim »

This takes me back to the good ol' days when I lived in Turkey. The landscapes are similar and I've found some similar species. Thanks for sharing!
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FloridaSerpent
Posts: 85
Joined: October 18th, 2014, 12:12 pm
Location: South Florida

Re: Milos 2014

Post by FloridaSerpent »

Those Podarcis milensis are absolutely gorgeous. I also really like the geckos. And it always sucks to find DORs, I've only started roadcruising a few months ago and I've already seen more DORs than I can handle. It's a damn shame.
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The Real Snake Man
Posts: 405
Joined: June 12th, 2010, 4:08 pm
Location: Pasadena, CA or Mission, TX

Re: Milos 2014

Post by The Real Snake Man »

Great post, I remember reading about "endangered vipers on the island of Milos" when I was a little kid (don't take the quotations as a doubt of that fact). I had no idea, however, that the place had such a unique geological flavor to it. Looks like a really neat destination for a trip. Thanks for sharing.

-Gene
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ThamnElegans24
Posts: 406
Joined: November 23rd, 2010, 6:44 pm
Location: Mesa, Arizona

Re: Milos 2014

Post by ThamnElegans24 »

Wow, that Cat Snake looks just like a Nightsnake!
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shredsteban
Posts: 199
Joined: April 7th, 2012, 8:53 pm
Location: Riverside, Ca

Re: Milos 2014

Post by shredsteban »

Awesome post. Great photos and narrative. Good thing its fang didn't make it through one of the holes on your shoe!
kevinb
Posts: 56
Joined: June 7th, 2010, 7:53 am
Location: Stroud , UK

Re: Milos 2014

Post by kevinb »

Thanks for the kind remarks, it was a great trip and a lovely location. Don't worry Shredsteban, I was holding the shoe and not wearing it.
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