SLOWINSKI'S RAT SNAKE

The Rat Snakes of Elaphe are not my 'cup of tea', including Corn Snakes.

But every now and then i will spot one that is particularly nice.

I apologise for the pictures taken on my mobile phone but here is Slowinski's Rat Snake, which is what i am told its called as I had never heard of Slowinski nor seen a Rat Snake like this previously.

It is very light slate grey with the orange patches. A largish specimen this one too!

Male by the look of it.

MY POND IN PROGRESS

Well not much of a pond really but it holds fifty gallons and filled up with rain water in just seven days!

It also run out the little overflow pipe I fitted and filled up a bucket too!!

Work in progress and I have to raise the side with the overflow pip a little and then place something around the outside, like slim Bamboo canes to make it look presentable?!

Then, as shown in the picture, I have a lid with which I will first mess around with, cut sections out of it to create a lip. This way anything I place within in the form of amphibians will not get out...well except for the section where I will place a square mos filled container for them to hibernate in that I can then remove and place in a frost free shed. I have three sheds!!

Then I will try and get a nice but small Water Lily and I am already wondering what animals I can get to live in it. I had thought about simple Goldfish, well I say simple but I never do anything simple!! I also thought abut American Rainbow Dace, like Cyprinella (Notropis) lutrensis or Notropis chrosumus but they will end up in my aquarium!

Fitted TAP wrong, do not know how, and it came off. Fitted it properly, despite measurements not being standard fits, and then realised that it MAY be WORKING but still fitted WRONG?! LMAO!

When weather warms up in Spring 2013 I can easily remedy this but it does not leak, and that is the main things. Will have to be careful turning the tap though until I make the necessary modifications, without need to empty the pond!

Of course there are the possibilities of my personal favourites...

Bombina pachypus (Itallian or Apennine Yellow Bellied Toad)
Messotrion alpestris apuanus (North Italian Alpine Newt)
Triturus marmoratus pygmaeus (Pygmy Marbled Newts)
Triturus (or whatever genus it is in now) vittatus ophryticus (Banded Newt)

or perhaps some Neurergus?!

The POND in all its glory!!

Holes in wall behind it I MAY place TWO Air tubes through with the Air Pump, double outlet Interpet one I think I have, to aerate the water. Well possibly i will see as it goes along.

 A Tap fitted to make cleaning a BREEZE!!

Some silicon sealer to collect the overflow rain water for my aquarium and Orchids

 Finally filled, well i say finally but only took a week?!

Outlets pipes can be seen to the left in white. One capped with clear plastic to fit a LIGHT, the other a TAP!

What will eventually become a LIP. Unless I see something better and easier I can buy?!

First time in years I have a POND!!

Yes i have acquired a Pond!

LOL, cannot quite get over it myself but a bit of luck and pure chance that I managed to get a free 50 gallon drum given to me?!

It had some bored holes and a couple of brass pipes coming out the bottom and was told it was used as a water filter but this mattered not!!

I sealed up the holes I did not need, used silicone adhesive to  attach a clear plastic cap onto one of the lower brass pipes, idea being I may fit a light onto it so can watch at night and light up the bottom, and the other I fitted a brass tap!

This would also make emptying it out for refilling a great deal easier to boot, good for me!

At a hole at the top I fitted a pipe to which I will attach a flexible and long pipe to channel any overflowing rain water into buckets to use on my aquarium and my Orchids! COOL!!!!

I also have a lid I can cut into a lip so that any amphibians I want to put in cannot climb out!!

I already mentioned rain water and this is because I will place it in one corner of my garden in front of the rain divert-er so it will fill with rain water and not need to be filled with tap water!

I have spent a few days gluing the parts that I need to and tomorrow it will be finished and then I can place it where I want it, move my garden table to one side and Bob's your uncle?! Need to make sure it is level too and I will remove the water from the current 80 litre plastic bin I am using and then I can use this for a ... err BIN!! LOL.

This has sat in the corner of the garden being used to store tap water so I can water my Japanese Maples and other garden plants in the event I am in a rush and do not have time to drag the water hose through the house!

Now is the matter of what to place inside the large pond?

Once filled i will throw a Water Lily in their and there are some toads about I am trying to get my hands on ... Italian Yellow Bellied Toads (well Orange really) Bombina (variegata) Pachypus.

Also would be good to get hold of some Italian Alpine Newts too, Messotrion, or umm Lissotriton lol, alpestris apuanus.

Whether I can acquire these or not I do not know but hopefully and if not something else of interest may pop up.

Maybe fish but I cannot think of anything I would want to keep in it as you would not get anything you could really appreciate in a container of that type, except Gold Rice Fish of Gold White Cloud Mountain Minnows or err something Gold when I am not really a big fan of.

Koi Carp simply get too big.

Favourite Fish

Another favourites list...

Cyathpharynx furcifer is to of the list and recently been called the King Featherfin Cichlid, or something very similar, and from a favourite lake of mine in the wonderous Rift Valey in Africa called Lake Tanganyika

Tropheus moorii, brichardi, duboisi and others referred to as the Black Tropheus and all also from Lake Tanganyika

Cyprichromis genus and again from the same lake in africa

American Rainbow Shiners, Notropis chrosomus

Red Shiners, Cyprinella lutrensis

Zebra Pleco, Parancistrus zebra and similar ones

Killie Fish of Aphyosemion, Nothobranchius and others

American Darters of the Etheostoma genus

Celestial Pearl Danios

Leave it there for now and list more below this line at a later date!

Favourite Amphibians

Well here is another of my favourites lists and this time around it is the world of amphibians and if I am totally honest the one area that has always been closest to my heart.

So including a few surprises I will start with here it comes...

Natterjack Toad, Bufo calamita, and not only native to my country but the only native species in my list?!

Italian Alpine Newt, Messotriton (Triturus) alpestris apuanus with brilliant blues much smaller and smoother than the other Alpine Newts and hugely aquatic to boot. Had the deepest oranges on the belly colouration and the silver dotted black of the flanks appears on the throat too!

Italian Yellow Bellied Toad, Bombina (variegata) pachypus and these three are th holy trinity for me but to call this animal a yellow bellied toad is a little off as it is more tangerine in colir with flashes of two shades of blue and blue-grey. At least the ones I found were at any rate.

Red-Eyed Tree Frogs, Agalychnis callidryas of South America and well known thorught the world thanks to David Attenborough!

Reinwart's Flying Frog, Rhacophorus reinwadrtii, of Asia and a stunning animal f you get the right form and though despite ones very similar recently appearing and being bred they are not a patch on the others with flashes of electric blue throughout oranges on flanks while the frog is a terrific lichen green in colour!

Fire Salamanders and of particular interest to me are the Salamandra salamandra gallaica, morenica, algira (very red ones), gigliolii and added to these are the Alpine Salamander types Salamandra atra aurorae and Middle East (typical) type Salamandra infraimmaculata infraimmaculata and orientalis.

Banded Newt, Triturus vittatus.

Euproctus or Brook Salmanders

Green Salamander, Aneides aeneus

Painted Ensatinas, like Ensatina escholtzii

Plethodon jordani

Red Salamanders. Pseudotriton rubra

Green Toads, Bufo viridis

err Green Toads, Bufo debilis and

Green (OK SONORAN) Toads, Bufo retiformis

Harlequin Frogs and all inparticular Atelopus zeteki and varius

Golden Toads, Bufo periglenes, provided not extinct as quoted in 1ate 80's early 90's.

Helmeted Water Toad or Chilean Bullfrog, Caudiverbera caudiverbera

The South American Horned Frogs like Ceratophrys ornata, cranwelli, cornuta and the like

The Asian Horned Frogs, or more correctly Leaf Frogs, of the Megophrys complex, like nasuta, robusta and aceras.

The diminutive African Reed Frogs and in particular Hyperolius marmoratus and taeniatus

Right going to stop there and no doubt there are a fair number of ommissions but at least I remembered the usual suspects ... as with Reptiles, additions will emerge below this sentence.

Favourite Reptiles

Rught you will have to bare with me here as many things have changed as regards scientific names and sometimes this is for the better, and often LONG overdue, and sometimes this is for the worst. T give case examples of each I will state two species one belong to Newts of Europe, Tritiurus, and the other a snake found in New Guinea known as the Green Tree Python and at last look was called Morelia viridis but was previous and MORE CORRECTLY known as Chondropythin viridis and no doubt STILL referred to as Chondros today by a great many admirers, breeders and hobbysists around the world.

Morelia INDEED!

So my list and we we start off with the one I have already mentioned...

Chondropython viridis or Green Tree Python as opposed to the Emerald Tree Boa of South America anc curiously similar but not as vivid in my opinion and an example or parallel evolution.

The Scarlet Kingsnake, was known as Lampropeltis triangulum (I think it used to be called) elapsoides and was never really a Kingsnake of any kind and very small in size but striking in colour.

Ibiza Wall Lizards, Podarcis pityuensis..

Calotes genus, Blood Dragons I thnk they are sometimes known as.

Phelsuma cepaediana, Peacock Day Gecko and again guessing with my memory banks on common name!

The Flying Geckos whos scientific name escapes me right now and I am not feeling too great lol.

Jewelled Geckos of Egypt and again latin escapes me.

The Indigo Snakes of the Drymarchon genus, like melanus, couperi and corais.

Wonder geckos of the Teratoscincus genus and keyserlingii in particular.

Brazilian Rainbow Boa and now I am losing it as I cannot remember the scientific name on that I deserve to be shot?!?! LMAO.

The Eyed Lizard of Europe, Lacerta lepida.

The Green Lizard of Europe, Lacerta viridis (viridis means green which I think melanurus may do too).

Amphisbaenia and despite its name is not an amphibian and despite its lack of legs is not a snake! Otherwise known as Worm Lizards.

Painted Geckos and canot remember latin but look like smaller Phelsuma, or Day Geckos, but with a blue body and a yellow head which reminds me...

Rainbow Agama, Agama Agama and there is a dreaful echo?!

Also how could I forget a personal favourite with absolute oddles of character, tame as they come and best of all they are VEGGIES!!!!

Euromastyx ornata, maliensis and a few others besides!! Often called Spiny Tailed Lizards.

These are what i will include for now but I have no doubt I have forgotten a fair few and am under the weather while typing this so will edit it at some point. So anythig below this lie will be additions.

Reappearance of a Sweet Heart!!

Before I post any more on my adventures both old and new I would like to mention how someone involved in animals I have not seen for a long time and I have sorely missed has reappeared back into my life.

This was after several years and then some and oddly only a few days before I spotted her I had previously just a few days beforehand had a conversation about her.

She is sweet, kind, a total Geek and loved her to bits for that and she has a love of animals I can feel a kinship with, well did break my first ever bone saving a drowning fledgling Wood Pigeon?!

She has a store on Zazzle for anyone wanting anything with animals, spiders, frogs and whatever else she may be harbouring away on her page...


http://www.zazzle.co.uk/mbr/238426622478743723

She showed me a picture of herself and that seemingly nice chap that was in the Mighty Boosh, not familiar with names so much and never watched it. He was in the IT Crowd on Channel 4 and hid spider-man style in the back room.

I loved that show, shame they will not be doing anymore! :(