Before I begin taking about the field trip itself, let me introduce some background information about Tibet. Tibet is sited at the southwest part of China, bordering Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan in the northwest, Nepal, India, and Bhutan in the south. Even though the Tibetan Plateau is the highest plateau in the world, averaging over 4000 meters above sea level, but the southeastern parts are at generally low altitude (from 500m to 2000m) with warmer climate. Because of the gas channel of the Brahmaputra River, warm water gas can diffuse from the Indian Ocean into the inland; as result, it creates Medog Rainforest, the most northern tropical forest in the world.
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After finishing the 5th Asian Herpetological Conference at Chengdu on June 4th, we took the plane to Lhasa on June 6th. Within the first three days we all struggled with the High-Elevation Response: headache, chest pain, ect… we all felt really sick and I was constantly having nose-bleeding due to the low humility. As result, there is not much going on for the first few days.
From the plane
Few photos of the Lhasa city.
Lhasa River
The first herp species we got was Lhasa rock agama, Laudakia sacra. It was defiantly the dominant reptile species around Lhasa city. Juveniles had different coloration than adults, where they had light orange spots. It was usually codistributed with Tibet bow-fingered gecko, Cyrtodactylus tibetanus, which hided under large rocks during the day and foraged at night.
Laudakia sacra
Juvenile
Adult
Cyrtodactylus tibetanus
Their Habitats:
As one of the only few amphibians that managed to make to the Tibetan Plateau, Mountain slow frog, Nanorana parkeri, was the most common herp on the Plateau.
tadpole
The second stop was Jilong (Chinese 吉隆), small town at the bordered between China and Nepal. After about 8-hour driving, we finally got to the town at about 10 pm. Then we contacted the two researchers from South China Institute of Endangered Animal who arrived two weeks ago and had dinner with them. The researchers of South China Institute already had some specimens during the two weeks, including two road-killed and one live Orthriophis hodgsoni, an Amphiesma platyceps, and a Bufo himalayanus.
Orthriophis hodgsoni
Amphiesma platyceps
Bufo himalayanus
On the second day we first surveyed the surrounding areas of the town.
we got many tadpoles of Bufo himalayanus inside this rock pool
Habitats
We saw many Nepal gray langurs, Semnopithecus schistaceus.
Sign put up by the Natural Reserve staff.
Afetr getting permit from the local Boarder Defense, we left the town on the third day and drove to Resuo (Chinese 热所). At that night, we searched along the stream that passing through the camping place, and we got many Liebig’s frogs, Nanorana liebigii and spotted stream frog, Amolops formosus. We saw two barking dears, Muntiacus muntjak, but could not manage to take the shots before they disappeared in the darkness.
Searching frogs
Nanorana liebigii
Amolops formosus
Habitat
We were shocked by the high population density of the Nanya rock agama, Laudakia tuberculata, along the valley in the next morning. They were just everywhere! Adults had the bright blue color with yellow spots on top, while the juveniles were gray with white spots. Adults seemed to be omnivorous that fed both on insects and plants (flowers, shoots, and seeds) while the juveniles mainly fed on insects.
Adult
Juvenile
