Dear SARCA Supporters,

WHO'S WHO IN THE SARCA ZOO

Rene Navarro, IT Whizz	Candice Lakay, Data Tamer	Sue Kuyper, Financial Guru

THE VM CHAMPS

The SARCA VM is about to hit 5000 records - an impressive achievement, due to all of you who have enthusiastically and generously provided us with amazing reptile records. Please check out our website for the results of the 2007/2008 VM competition, and congrats to all the prize winners. We really value all of your contributions and as a small measure of thanks, we are doing a feature of our Top 20 VM contributors. So here are 11 of the Top Twenty VM champs!

Suretha van Rooyen says: I am an Environmental Professional for the City of Cape Town. Cliff Dorse says: I am the Biodiversity Coordinator for the City of Cape Town. Cliff and Suretha say: Every spare moment is spent in the veld looking at plants, birds, mammals and of course herps! The SARCA project has given our extreme passion for biodiversity an outlet which has real value. This has caused us to be largely devoted to reptiles over the last two years at the expense of the other groups! It has been wonderful to have some justification for our travels! Having an expert panel vetting our sightings has helped us learn allot during the project!

Malcolm Douglas says: At the age of four my folks asked me to retrieve the Sunday newspaper but got more than they bargained for when I returned with the paper and a large red lipped snake, both of which I tossed onto the bed for their inspection! Since that day forty two years ago I have been involved with reptiles in one way or another, fuelled by my older brother who encouraged and mentored me in the ways of natural science. My vocation of training field guides and trackers has taken me into the bush for much of my working life, so it is not surprising that I come across some interesting herps from time to time!

Elton le Roux says: I am a 30 something red blooded male who started my schooling on the Cape Flats at Valhalla Primary, and am now busy with the MTech degree in Nature Conservation with the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in George. The degree has bearing on the distribution and identification of priority areas for conservation of amphibians and reptiles in the Gouritz Basin and Garden Route Region of South Africa. My interest in herps was spurred by two great friends who already had a passion for reptiles, both keeping snake collections of their own. While I was with Cape Nature Conservation, a lack of incoming biodiversity data was identified and a back-to-basics program brought into effect. This included the collection of baseline data and in so-doing, I developed an interest in the herpetological fauna of the region. I have since moved on to the Augrabies Falls National Park where my lovely wife, Beverley, and I enjoy doing our contributions to biodiversity in the Northern Cape.

Wessel Badenhorst says: I started my interest in reptiles when still young (five years of age) when I mastered the art of shooting them with a bow and arrow in the Northern Cape at the Draghoender farm. Since then I became very conservationally inclined and now I do not even have a collection of  reptiles. About 4 years ago I got a digital camera and started to look for something to snap. This gave me an added  interest - especially when camping in the outback. I still am a complete palooka as far as knowledge of the subject is concerned but the Bill Branch book did a little to  improve matters. It gives one a kick if you can find something new.  I must admit that I only now realise that practically all species must have been discovered already - thus taking the shine off the idea of discovering something new!  Maybe I got lucky with the supposedly "Acontias (now Microacontias) litoralis" that I hold in my hand in the photo?

Andre Coetzer says: My interest in reptiles is actually just another excuse to get out of the city! Combined with a keen interest in photography, this herping hobby has resulted in many days spent hiking up mountains, lifting rocks, and chasing after scaled creatures. My main interest has always been butterflies, but chasing butterflies in the bush led to a number of accidental encounters with mambas, whip snakes, other snakes and lizards. So now I am also addicted! In between the butterflies and reptiles, I study engineering at Tukkies.

Tony Phelps says: I am a reptile ecologist with a special interest in venomous snakes. My best-known work is a long term study of the European adder (Vipera berus) in the UK. I moved to South Africa in 2003 and am currently studying the ecology of the Southern Adder (Bitis armata), Puff Adder (Bitis arietans) and Cape Cobra (Naja nivea), in the Western Cape. My book Old World Vipers will be published autumn 2008. I am also Director of the Cape Reptile Institute, a non-profit research organisation which also runs field study and snake handling courses.

David Maguire says: Hi my name is David Maguire and I'm a reptileholic.  Ever since I can remember I've had an interest in reptiles. Through the SARCA project I've had GREAT exposure to the reptile world, had loads of fun and made some true friends.  My dad and I spend countless hours in the field - he looking at rocks and me looking under them.  My mom on the other hand has no interest in reptiles, but she does pack our picnic bag and listens to us blabber foreign - both my parents support me fully in what I do.  I finished matric last year (2007) and am hoping to persue a National Diploma in Nature conservation. The gecko in the pic is Lygodactylus capensis - Cape dwarf gecko.

Meyrick Bowker says: After 34 years of science teaching I took early retirement and returned to university to do an M.Sc. During my field work in Zululand on Pelicans I had the opportunity to indulge in a whole lot of peripheral things. SARCA caught my attention, and so reptiles now complement my interest in bird ringing and trees. SARCA provides me a wonderful opportunity to mix the worlds of conservation, photography and electronic gadgetry! I have discovered that reptile identification can be rather like identifying cisticolas and larks, but the difference is that with SARCA the experts are there to confirm your identifications!

Beryl Wilson says: I was born and grew up in the late-Rhodesia and am now a zoologist at the McGregor Museum in Kimberley, where I have worked since 1987. My love for herps, in particular the legless kind, dates back to lying in a cot draped with a huge African Rock Python - I have the photo to prove it, but what were my parents thinking…? However, my work makes me concentrate on all fauna in the Northern Cape region so I never had the time to specialise in this particular field. Maybe in the next 20 years…?

Johannes Els says: I am the curator of reptiles and fish at Cango Wildlife Ranch, a PAAZAB (Pan-African Association of Zoological Gardens and Aquaria) accredited zoological institution. My interest in wild reptiles was encouraged at very young age by Richard Newbery, while growing up close to Rustenburg Nature Reserve in the North West Province, and I have never looked back. I am also a nature conservation student through the University of South Africa and conduct ecological research on Bitis rubida in the Swartberg Mountains under the mentorship of Dr. Tony Phelps, inbetween my daily duties as a curator.

Marius's Top Ten, SARCA VM records 2001-3000

Newsletters 7 and 10 reported on my selections of the top ten special SARCA Virtual Museum submissions. With nearly 5000 records submitted to date, it's time to nominate the next set of top ten VM records. Of course, judging the novelty rating of a particular record will differ between various evaluators – thus the following ranking is according to my personal opinion only.

Pygmy Wolf Snake, by J. Harvey	Undescribed species of flat gecko, by Z. Shaikh

#1 is SARCA 2799: Lycophidion pygmaeum – Pygmy Wolf Snake, submitted by J. Harvey. I can't believe Mr Harvey found a Pygmy Wolf Snake! Well I guess I have to believe it, because he's got the pics to prove it. I am hugely jealous. This rare snake species was only described in 1996.

#2 is SARCA2805: Afroedura sp. – an undescribed species of flat gecko, submitted by Z. Shaikh. As far as we know, this species only occurs on top of Mariepskop in Mpumalanga. It was discovered some years ago by Dr Niels Jacobsen, and the taxonomy of the flat geckos are currently being investigated by Dr Aaron Bauer of Villanova University, USA. I really did not expect to see this animal in the SARCA Virtual Museum.

Undescribed species of dwarf chameleon, by A. Kok	Dusky Spade-snouted Worm Lizard, by C. Andri

#3 is SARCA 2514: Bradypodion sp. – an undescribed species of dwarf chameleon, submitted by A. Kok. Yep, believe it or not, we are still discovering new species of reptiles in South Africa. In fact, there may be six or more new dwarf chameleons awaiting formal naming. This particular species will be called the Emerald Dwarf Chameleon, which was previously mistaken for the Drakensberg Dwarf Chameleon. See SARCA 2818 & 2819 by D. Swanepoel for examples of the latter.

# 4 is SARCA 2979: Monopeltis infuscate – Dusky Spade-snouted Worm Lizard, submitted by C. Andri. Worm lizards, or amphisbaenians, are so seldom seen that they will always find a place on the SARCA Virtual Museum Top Ten.

Transvaal Quill-snouted Snake, by J. Harvey	Mashona Hinged Terrapin, by J. Harvey

#5 is SARCA 2804: Xenocalamus transvaalensis – Transvaal Quill-snouted Snake, submitted by J. Harvey. Finding a quill-snouted snake is always a rare thrill – ask any herpetologist.

#6 is SARCA 2803: Pelusios rhodesianus – Mashona Hinged Terrapin, again by James Harvey. A rare terrapin in South Africa.

Desert Mountain Adder, by S.S. van Wyk and A.C. van Wyk	Lang's Crag Lizard, by D. Swanepoel

#7 is SARCA 2045: Bitis xeropaga – Desert Mountain Adder, submitted by S.S. van Wyk and A.C. van Wyk. OK, so this record is from Namibia and thus not directly of relevance to the update of the S.A. Red Data Book for reptiles. But it remains a special find – one that is still on my wish-list. Wouldn't it be great if we could also run a NRCA (Namibian Reptile Conservation Assessment)?

#8 is SARCA 2729: Pseudocordylus langi – Lang's Crag Lizard, submitted by D. Swanepoel. To find this beautiful lizard, you must be willing to climb high up in the Drakensberg. It deserves a place in the SARCA Top Ten both for effort and rarity.

Cape File Snake, by G. Tomsett	Leatherback Turtle, by B. Rose

#9 is SARCA 2385 & 2491: Mehelya capensis capensis - Cape File Snake, two records submitted by G. Tomsett and B. Maritz respectively. This is probably quite a common species, and it has a wide distribution even outside of South Africa, but it is one of those sought after species that most local herpetologists never get to see in the wild.

#10 is SARCA 2249 & 2461: Dermochelys coriacea - Leatherback Turtle, two records submitted by B. Rose. Once in a while one may encounter dead or half-dead turtles that have washed out onto the beach, or one may be fortunate enough to see turtles on the beach when they come to nest, but who ever gets to see a leatherback out at sea?! Well Barry Rose sommer sent in pics of two Leatherbacks out at sea, and a Green Turtle too for good measure (see SARCA 2455).

SARCA AT THE KIRSTENBOSCH BIODIVERSITY EXPO

Marcel Witberg and Lulu work the crowds	SARCA: Best on Show	Candice and friend

On 22 May, Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden hosted a Biodiversity Expo, to showcase the range of biodiversity conservation projects running in the Cape Floristic Region. Over 700 people, amongst them many school learners, passed through the Expo. Marius gave a well-attended talk about Atlasing, and SARCA's stall - one of about 20 - was voted "best on show." This was largely thanks to Marcel and Retief from the Cape Reptile Club, who brought along showstoppers such as Lulu and the mole snakes (pictured above).

GREAT ARTICLES

SARCA is a joint project of the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), the Herpetological Association of Africa (HAA), and the Avian Demography Unit (ADU), Department of Statistical Sciences, University of Cape Town.