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Herping at schlangenbad and surroundings (advice needed)

PostPosted: Mon Sep 03, 2018 6:33 pm
by Jesper Berndsen
Hello,

My name is Jesper and i'm a herping enthusiast from the Netherlands :).

I want to make a trip to Schlangenbad next year with some friends to find the aesculapian snake (Zamenis longissimus) and also visit the Reinheimer Teich where they reintroduced the European Pond terrapin (Emys orbicularis). I'm planning on going somewhere in may/june during the mating season of the aesculapian snake. Can anyone recommend me some nice places to visit? Right now i'm just thinking about hiking in the forested areas around Schlangenbad.

I'm also looking for a nice place to watch western green lizard (Lacerta bilineata) and green toads (Bufotes viridis). Currently i'm planning on visiting the southern slopes next to the Moesel (Cochem) or Nahe (der Rotenfels) for the western green lizard.

Tips and advice is apprecitated!

Greetings,
Jesper

Re: Herping at schlangenbad and surroundings (advice needed)

PostPosted: Wed Sep 12, 2018 1:12 pm
by Andreas Hohmeister
Hi Jesper,

I live pretty close to the Rheingau-Taunus area, where Z. longissimus is very common (e.g. Investigation for the last years lead to a number of aprox. 10.000 individuals in this area). Even the village of Schlangenbad is well known for the aesculapian snake, due to the fact that this town has - situated in a deep and small valley - a cooler climate than the surrounding areas it is not a hot spot! You can find much more longissimus in the lower regions southwards towards the Rhine river, especially in (abandoned) wine yards. Check out the surroundings of Eltville, Walluf, Kiedrich, Hallgarten and the western parts of Wiesbaden (Wiesbaden-Frauenstein, close to the cemetary or around the "Goethe Stein"; there is also a "snake trail" signed out). Good place to find snakes is also the area between Wambach and Bärstadt, where a lot of artificial hiding places are installed due to longterm longissimus monitoring. The monastery Eberbach gives also shelter for a big and stable population of Zamensis longissimus. Best time slot for sightings of Zamensis is mid April till end of May; later it is difficult to spot the snakes because of dense vegetation. And remember: These are very secret snakes, usually hiding under logs or debris at the ground; you will never encounter a longissimus climbing or basking in tree branches - believe me....

Re: Herping at schlangenbad and surroundings (advice needed)

PostPosted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 11:59 am
by Jesper Berndsen
Hi Andreas,

Thanks for mentioning all those places!
I'm looking forward to going there.

Greetings,
jesper

Re: Herping at schlangenbad and surroundings (advice needed)

PostPosted: Tue May 28, 2019 11:20 am
by Andreas Hohmeister
update for Jasper: I was last weekend at the Rotenfels (Nahe Valley) during good weather (sunshine, sometimes cloudy sky). No observation of Lacerta bilineata, only a few Podarcis muralis. But only a few hundred meters away at the banks of the Nahe river I spotted some Natrix tesselata. Check out the banks between Bad Münster am Stein /Ebernburg and Norheim...