By David Broek, Alfred Kok & Remco Ploeg

Summer months are usually not the best time to go out herping. Most reptiles and especially amphibians are hidden most of the time. One of the few exceptions is the Alpine Salamander (Salamandra atra), for this species the best period to find them is during rain in the summer months. Based on this fact we were planning for a short trip to the Alps in August. Because only the Suisse or Austrian Alps do not hold the biggest variety of herps, we decided to extend the route a bit, and added Slovenia, Italy and even the island Krk in Croatia to the itinerary. Even though the period was slightly restricted by the busy summer period filled with work and other activities, and therefore was no longer than 6 days, we still managed to visit all these locations and see several species.  

Overview of the visited sites (red dots), overnighting sites (blue dots) and the number of species of herps for each location.

On Tuesday 6th of August Alfred travelled to David’s house in Ede to have some preparations, fill the car with a lot of stuff and buy the necessary food for the first days. Next day at 6.30 in the morning we left Ede and drove to Dieblich in Germany where we would meet up with Remco, who came from Luxemburg where he already was having holiday. It was raining most of the time, but when we entered the valley of the Mosel, rain stopped. At the hotel where Remco had spent the night, we had a coffee and saw clouds were slightly disappearing and a little bit of sun was creating the perfect circumstances for our first target. Only after a few minutes we found the first Dice Snake (Natrix tessellata). Two more individuals were seen at the banks of the Mosel. We left the place because we had still quite some distance to cover. As usual there were everywhere road works on the Deutsche Autobahn. Even some police officers dared to waste our time by stopping our car and questioning for any drugs aboard. When we offered them they could check our car on drugs if they didn’t believe us, they saw the amount of material in the car and looked not very happy, so they let us go. At 17.30 we finally arrived at our camping in the Austrian Lechtal. It was really cloudy but still light, so we decided to first have a look at the nearby lake. Under some logs we found the first Alpine Newt (Ichthyosaura alpestris)  and at the road we found some remains that were resembling a road-kill Alpine Salamander (Salamandra atra). Even though there was no sun at all, a medium-sized dragonfly flew around a bit and disappeared again. It might have been an Azure Hawker (Aeshna caerulea) but the observation was too short to see any diagnostic details. Underneath some other logs a cold Sand Lizard (Lacerta agilis) and a Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis) showed up. Especially Sand Lizard was not the first species we were expecting in this habitat of mountainous marsh. Also, some Common Frogs (Rana temporaria) were present. The next surprise were some logs holding six (!) Alpine Salamanders (S. atra). Raining started again, so was promising for the night. Because we were hungry and wanted to have pitched the tent before it was totally dark, we returned to the campsite. After dinner, we got our flashlights and started walking the paths searching for Alpine Salamanders. As expected, due to the weather they were just everywhere and we saw about 25 individuals that night almost effortless. It was quite a challenge to photograph them without killing our camera equipment, so we only made some quick shots. Totally soaked we came back to our tent and went to bed after this first, quite successful day. 

Dice Snakes (Natrix tessellata) and its habitat at the banks of the Mosel.

Sand Lizard (Lacerta agilis) in atypical habitat

Next day clothing, tent and camera gear was still totally drenched but we had to pack everything and left the camping early to drive to our next destination. At the McDonalds we had our breakfast. The view here was definitely the best view from a McDonalds we ever experienced. We saw some Spotted Nutcrackers  (Nucifraga caryocatactes), Ravens (Corvus corax), Red Kite (Milvus milvus) and an Eurasian Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). We continued our route to the south through the Alps. Our next stop was intended to find some Tree Frogs from the newly described species Hyla perrini. Based on genetic analysis Hyla intermedia from northern Italy belong to this new species. Initially we were at the wrong location in a park with only some exogenous terrapins (Trachemys scripta) and some Italian Sparrows (Passer italiae). Fortunately, we found something better: some ponds with a lot of reed, bramble and other good-looking vegetation. Even though habitat looked really suitable we found no Hyla, only some Green Frogs (Pelophylax sp.) and two Dice Snakes. Because of time restrictions we had to start driving again to our next stop. This stop was at a higher altitude, so we took a very small and steep road, and Alfred could test the power of his car. When we spotted some dead herps on the road we stopped and saw it were only Common Toads (Bufo bufo). Next to the road we also saw our first Wall Lizards (Podarcis muralis) and some Scotch Argus (Erebia aethiops). After some more climbing  we arrived at some promising spots, so we started searching for snakes and lizards at some sunny hills. A Smooth Snake (Coronella austriaca) showed up underneath a log. Even though the habitat looked suitable for Asp Viper (Vipera aspis) as well, we didn’t find any other snakes. Probably it was already too warm for vipers or other reptiles to be active, so we focused on the species we initially came for: Salamandra atra aurorae, also known as the Golden Salamander. This is a really special subspecies of the Alpine Salamander because it has a golden back. The subspecies has a quite restricted distribution but based on some scientific articles we were quite sure we were searching at the right locations and the right habitat. After flipping almost every trunk and stone in the forest we gave up at this site and moved on to a location at little higher altitude. This area was more stone-dominated, but still nothing was found underneath the stones and the only results were some rockslides. We would have liked to search longer, but the estimated travel time to our Slovenian camping, forced us to leave this area. Italian traffic was not very cooperative, so we decided to drive first to our camping without having dinner somewhere. During the traffic jam we saw some Pygmy Cormorant (Microcarbo pygmaeus) flying over.  

At 20.45 we finally arrived at our campsite in Planinsko Polje. After we found the owner of the camping, we started pitching the tent in the darkness of the evening.  Due to that fact, and also because of the totally dredged tent material it wasn’t as easy as the night before.  Because we only wanted to sleep, we skipped dinner and had a relatively long night.  

Smooth Snake (Coronella austriaca

Next morning, we woke up early, had some breakfast and left to the first selected site. Near a dirt road close to Postojna, we inspected some stone walls and other structures but with nothing as result. We continued this road when we found a camping where we parked the car. When we were collecting our field gear, Remco already flipped some material next to the car, and found a big adult Aesculapian Snake (Zamenis longissimus). When we handled the snake and started photographing, some camping guests passed by and looked very frightened about the snake.  At the camping we checked some rocky hills, only finding some Wall Lizards (Podarcis muralis). When a cook from the restaurant came asking what we were doing, answering we were searching just lizards (no snakes!), seemed to be the safest answer. He shook his head and said probably something like: ‘crazy tourists’ and disappeared again. 

Checking some other locations delivered nothing, until we saw a greenish lizard disappearing underneath some stones. Finding it back became quite a difficult task, but we were able to excavate the lizard and could safely conclude it was a Green Lizard (Lacerta viridis). The resident of the nearby cottage, even came to have a closer look and take a picture. Nice to have a local showing some interest for herps as well. After a photo-session, with a surprisingly cooperative lizard, we continued searching in the area. Also, some female Lacerta were found and on top of that a Smooth Snake. The area was crowded with butterflies as well, including some Violotet Fritillary (Boloria dia) and Marbled White (Melanargia galathea). 

Next target was an almost endemic lizard species: Horvath’s Rock Lizard (Iberolacerta horvathi). We checked some rock walls, but there was no sun heating up the surface so no lizards. Slightly lower we found some ruins with some sun as well and here we had more luck. In contrast to the morphologically very similar Wall Lizard (Podarcis muralis), the species didn’t appear to be very abundant and only three individuals were observed for a short period of time. At this site also some more Green Lizards were seen. Besides herps also some other nice critters like scorpions, cave grasshoppers, cave spiders, Chub (Squalius cephalus) and Graylings (Thymallus thymallus) were present. Remco and Alfred put all their effort in trying to catch one of the latter, but unfortunately didn’t succeed.  

When we drove back to the camping, we passed again the river. Now at this time of the day, a lot of dragonflies were active and we also expected some herps like Yellow-bellied Toad (Bombina variegata) in the vicinity. Besides the more usual insects, we found White-tailed Skimmer (Orthetrum albistylum), Small Pincertail (Onychogomphus forcipatus) and Large Copper (Lycaena dispar). Also, fish was caught: Danube Gudgeon (Gobio obtusirostris) and Stone Loach (Barbatula barbatula). Only herps seen were two larvae of Yellow-bellied Toad and some jumping Green frogs (Pelophylax sp.). 

After this stop we went to one of the many caves in the region. This one is known to be sometimes inhabited by Olm. And besides, it is also a cave that is relatively good accessible so the best option for us as inexperienced cavers. After a walk through the forest with some Wall Lizard in atypical habitat, we followed the path to the beautiful fern and moss dominated entrance of the cave. The cool humid air that came from the cave was more than welcome. When we entered the cave, the path became muddier and after about hundred meters we saw some water. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any Olms in the small visible part of the underwater river. Only some other animals, like Stone Loach, cave-inhabiting isopods and larvae of Common Toad were found. We left the cave and walked the steep path back to our car. Here we found a juvenile Common Lizard (Zootoca vivipara carniolica). Maybe in the near future this subspecies will be split off and become a separate species. At the camping Alfred and Remco took a shower when David prepared dinner. During dinner we had some talks with some fellow Dutch nature enthusiasts who were already in Slovenia for some more days. They clearly had a more realistic travelling schedule than we had. But still, we decided to stick to our initial plans to visit the Croatian island KrK next day. After dinner we made a quick stroll through the plains near our camping but didn’t see or hear any herps. After some beers with a group of British cavers back at the campsite we went to bed to have a decent amount of sleep for Krk next day. 

Aesculapian Snake (Zamenis longissimus)

Common Lizard (Zootoca vivipara carniolica)

On the fourth day of our trip we set the alarm at 05:30 to leave Slovenia for Croatia. We headed towards the island of Krk which is a presumed reptile hotspot. On the way there the car started to smoke excessive. Since there was nothing we could do about it, we decided to continue. A few kilometers down the road the ‘check engine’ light came on and the car lost a substantial amount of its power. We stopped to check the engine, but all fluids seemed to be at level so again we decided to continue. There was quite a bit of traffic at the border with Croatia, but Google led us over a backroad which let us avoid most of it. The bridge to the island was also very busy but only with people leaving the island so that didn’t slow us down that much. We arrived at Krk around 09:00 and the temperature was already quite high compared to Slovenia. We started in a bay just south of the bridge, which gave us a nice view of blue water, the mainland of Croatia and the bridge. We started going uphill at what seemed to be an old asphalt/tar filling station for trucks. Enough to be flipped, and we did saw our fist lizard of the day. Remco and Alfred were too slow, but David identified it as a Dalmatian Wall Lizard (Podarcis melisellensis). We slowly made our way up-hill but the temperature was already too high for us to be in the full reach of the sun. We saw some butterflies: Spotted Fritillary (Melitaea didyma) and Tree Grayling (Hipparchia statilinus). As we made our way down through a small, more forested area we found two individuals of Blue-throated Keeled Lizard (Algyroides nigropunctatus). On our way to the second location we stopped to buy some water and food in a big airconditioned supermarket. Outside the temperatures were still on the rise. At our second location we found some promising habitat. There was quite a bit of garbage along the road in the beginning, but it became more natural after a while. We ate our lunch first, to prevent it from heating up all too much. After our lunch we spread out and tried to find some reptiles. Remco found a shed skin from quite a big snake, but we couldn't identify the species. There were quite good-looking stone walls and small trees with noisy cicadas in the middle. All looked perfect for reptiles, and the skin we already found was proof of their presence but we didn't found anything. We suspected that the heat -which was already close to unbearable- took a big part in that. Because we didn’t find anything and the temperatures were still not going down we decided to drive to a beach and have a cool swim and some rest. While Remco and David swam for quite some time in the salty water, Alfred took a nap in the shade on the rocky beach. After our siesta we got back at it. At the road between Vrbnik and Kornić we found some stone walls near a pond close to the road. We investigated the walls first, which resulted in a few individuals of Italian Wall Lizard (Podarcis siculus) and Balkan Green Lizard (Lacerta trilineata). We spend some time at the stone walls, but eventually went to the small pond. Upon arrival we noticed great amounts of Eurasian Marsh Frog (Pelophylax ridibundus), and a lot of terrapins. At the first glance we only saw Pond Slider (Trachemys scripta), but when Remco threw in a piece of bread we noticed another terrapin. This terrapin was quite shy compared to the Trachemys, but some bread and time later we managed to catch a European Pond Terrapin (Emys orbicularis). Although nice to see a European species, this terrapin is probably also the result of an introduction in this pond. When we were about to leave Remco spotted a small Balkan Grass Snake (Natrix natrix persa) in a small puddle next to the pond. Also some dragonflies were seen here, including Souther Darter (Sympetrum meridionale) and Southern Skimmer (Orthetrum brunneum). Since it was already 17:30 we decided to buy some more water and find a place to eat. After our meal at a quite touristic beach, we went on our way again. We visited some roads around Jezero Ponikve, a large water reservoir. When we went down a rocky slope we found Podarcis siculus in great numbers. Alfred and Remco found a snake but it disappeared between the rocks before we could see what exactly it was. Before we reached the water we ran into some huge individuals of Common Toad (Bufo bufo). At the waters edge we concluded that the lake looked very sterile. So without a lot of searching and due to the darkness we went back to the car. At the fences that are placed around the lake we found another individual of Balkan Grass Snake. At the car we decided that it was best to abort our search for Cat Snake (Telescopus fallax) because of the drive we still had ahead of us, and the car still having problems. On our way back to the campsite we stopped at a gas station to fuel the car. Alfred bought some oil and filled the car to the maximum level. When we drove off from the gas station the car suddenly worked properly again and continued to do so the rest of the drive to the campsite.

European Mantis (Mantis religiosa)

Balkan Green Lizard (Lacerta trilineata)

Pond Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)

European Pond Terrapin (Emys orbicularis)

Grass Snake (Natrix natrix persa)

For our last full day in Slovenia, we still had two important Slovenian amphibians left on our target list, but first, we spend the morning searching for reptiles. We tried an old ruin in the vicinity of our campsite where we only found Eastern Green Lizard, Common Wall Lizard and Viviparous Lizard. We drove to the same area where we found Eastern Green Lizard two days before, hoping for some sunbathing snakes in the morning. Unfortunately, it already began to get very hot again, making it hard to find any reptiles. With some effort we managed to find some more Eastern Green Lizard, Aesculapian Snake and the same Smooth Snake as two days before (recapturing smooth snakes seems to be our specialty, as you can read in our report of SW-Iberia). The amount and species-richness of butterflies in the flower-rich meadows was overwhelming and compensated the lack of new reptile species. The sun was not only getting too hot for the snakes, but also for ourselves, so we drove westwards to the Italian border where we could not only find shade, but also our next target: the Italian Agile Frog (Rana latastei). In a few minutes, we already found the first adult specimen in a shaded forest puddle, together with some Yellow-bellied Toads (Bombina variegata). Following a stream meandering through the forest also delivered some juvenile Italian Agile Frogs, some more Yellow-bellied Toads and a Slow Worm (Anguis fragilis s.l.). The area is at the border of the distribution of two slow worm species (A. fragilis and A. veronensis), making it uncertain whether it is one of both species or even a hybrid. We still hoped to find Fire Salamander (Salamandra salamandra salamandra) and Italian Crested Newt (Triturus carnifex), which succeeded by finding larvae of the first and larvae and an adult female of the latter. 

Being afraid to leave Slovenia without seeing an Olm (Proteus anguis), we decided to play it safe and book a trip to Planinska jama. Leaded by a guide trying to tell funny stories about dragons and witches, we entered the cave together with some tourists with children competing to produce the loudest echo of all. However, it was all worth it, because after a short walk we finally saw what we were hoping for! In the turbulent water of a cave puddle a few meters beneath us, we could observe several Olms between the rocks on the bottom. We tried to make decent pictures, however the guide and the rest of the group were already bored watching olms after a few minutes and we had to continue.  It wasn’t really the olm-experience we were expecting, but were happy seeing it anyway. After the tour we celebrated our successes with some nice Slovenian bear meat (Ursus arctos) for Alfred and Remco and Red deer (Cervus elaphus) for David. We still didn’t feel very satisfied with our Olm observation so we decided to try the cave we visited previously, but this time by night. It turned out finding the huge cave entrance by night was harder than expected. After some detours we descended into the big hole with a minimum of light, to make sure that any potentially present olm would not be disturbed. Sadly this effort didn’t result in any Olms at this locations so we had to be content with what we had seen. 

Italian Agile Frog (Rana latastei) and its habitat

Italian Crested Newt (Triturus carnifex)

Fire Salamander (Salamandera salamandra salamandra)

Olm (Proteus anguinus)

Our last day meant many hours sitting in the car because we had to drive from Slovenia back to the Netherlands: about 1.200 kilometres and 12 hours. Because looking at the asphalt is not the most interesting thing to do, we had some discussion about adding a stop to search for Horned Viper (Vipera ammodytes). Because of the time-restrictions we had, it didn’t sound like the wisest idea, particularly because we knew our weaknesses with aborting a search. But because it was on route and it was a beautiful species, we decided to give it a try.   

After waking up and packing all our stuff in silence, we departed in northern direction.  At around 9.30 we arrived at the area in the south of Austria and there was a perfect amount of sun for reptiles. This area is known for Horned Viper (Vipera ammodytes). It has its most northernmost distribution in Austria and is not a common snake there. First, we saw an Eastern Green Lizard (Lacerta viridis), also not a very common species in this country. After only about 10 minutes of searching David suddenly was surprised by the prospected snake perfectly displayed in the shade of some trees. What an amazing creature! We took some time to photograph the viper and then walked back to the car satisfied by this successful short stop. On the way back we saw a Podarcis muralis to add to the list for this location. Having fulfilled this target faster than expected we had some time left, so went to the supermarket to buy breakfast and some other food to survive the left 10,5 hours of driving. In the evening, we arrived in Venlo, where we had dinner at the McDonalds and left Remco at the train station. Alfred brought David back to Ede and then drove to Leeuwarden to arrive there really late. 

Horned Viper (Vipera ammodytes)