Ecuador Photos

Dear Members and Visitors,

Conservation of hereof resources is critical in the overall scheme of things both in Virginia and elsewhere. Reptiles and amphibians are important components of ecosystems, and their removal from such systems could be devastating to the big picture. Habitat loss is possibly one the greatest threats. We see habitat loss in our temperate zone quite often in the form of increasing impervious surfaces while in the Neotropics it is equally dramatic though in a different form.

I was able to observe such habitat loss and some of the herpetofauna at risk by participating in herpetology research in western/coastal Ecuador in 2008 and 2009 with Reptiles and Amphibians Ecology International (RAEI). Under the direction of Paul S. Hamilton, PhD, RAEI is a nonprofit organization dedicated to conservation of herpetofauna and has been involved in research in Ecuador and elsewhere. I encourage everyone to visit their website at www.reptilesandamphibians.org for more information about the organization, volunteer opportunities and other ways you can help such as through donations.

Most of the rainforest habitats in western/coastal Ecuador have been lost by conversion to agricultural uses and cattle ranching. Some efforts at preservation are underway, and it was encouraging to see efforts on the part of Ecuadorean naturalists and conservationists albeit facing great challenges.

I was fortunate to visit two study locations in July-August 2008 these being La Perla and Pata de Pajaro. During a second expedition in February-March 2009, I visited two different sites called Reserva Lalo Loor and Reserva Jama-coaque. While La Perla is more inland and at a lower elevation, Pata de Pajaro is a cloud forest habitat located further west and approximately 800 meters above sea level. Lalo Loor and Jama-coaque are located very near the Pacific coast.

Enjoy the selected photographs taken during the expeditions, and consider becoming involved with international herpetofauna conservation.

* Click on an image to see a larger version.


Entrance to La Perla, a private preserve located in the province of Esmeraldes in western Ecuador. It is a humid rainforest at about 200 meters above sea level.	Pristimantis achitinus. Commonly observed at Lalo Loor, Jama-coaque and La Perla – possibly the most commonly observed anuran at these three sites. Found predominantly on the ground in leaf litter though sometimes on lower vegetation.	Trachycephalus jordani. This large treefrog was found inside the building used as our laboratory at La Perla. We had just returned from a night herping to find it climbing up the wall.	Dipsas gracilis. This juvenile was found in a tree approximately 2-3 meters above the ground along a stream at La Perla. Non-venomous and feeds on gastropods.	Enyalioides sp. This lizard was literally caught sleeping during a night survey along a stream at La Perla.	Documenting external characteristics of specimens was one of the tasks at hand. Here we attempt to obtain this data to identify the species of a rather small frog in the laboratory building at La Perla.

What’s that saying, “red on yellow kill a fellow”? Well, that phrase has no application to the many species of coral snakes in South America. In this case however, it turned out to be Lampropeltis triangulum though I’m uncertain as to subspecies. Needless to say, a taxonomic key was carefully used.	Part of La Perla still involves farming and one morning farmers cleared the vegetation from several acres. At that point several herps came out of hiding including this Leptodactylus sp.	After an unsuccessful night of trying to capture basilisks (though diurnal they were way to wary even at night), our party had a near head-on collision with a fer-de-lance (Bothrops asper) in a stream. Fer-de-lance are pit vipers.	Another sleeping lizard, Anolis princeps.	Anuran diversity is well known in the Neotropics. This is a treefrog called Hypisoboas picturata. Several individuals were observed on vegetation along streams at La Perla.	Bufonid toads too, were observed in places. This is a photo of Rhinella margaritifera found along streams at La Perla.

Herps were not the only interesting organisms. The Neotropics should be considered an entomologist’s dream based on the diversity of invertebrates. This harlequin long-horned beetle (Acrocinus longimanus…?) was found inside the laboratory at La Perla.	Commensal pseudoscorpions residing under the wings of the harlequin beetle.	This odd looking snake is Imantodes inornatus. Note the very skinny body compared to its wide head. Nonvenomous and very docile.	A plethodontid salamander of the genus Bolitoglossa (uncertain as to species). Observed at La Perla at night on a large leaf at approximately 2.5-3 meters height.	Starting point for long hike up to Pata de Pajaro in the Manabi Province.	A view from our base camp at around 330 meters enroute to Pata de Pajaro. We were headed literally to the clouded area in the photo.

Our campsite at Pata de Pajaro around 800 meters. Rainy, drizzly…just plain wet constantly. The stretched tarp area in the background served as our laboratory. A far cry from the comfort at La Perla!	An Anolis princeps resting from a dead frond over the trail at Pata de Pajaro. Note that there are several mosquitoes feeding and one tick is attached near the base of the tail.	Oxybelis sp. observed during the day at Pata de Pajaro.	Imantodes cenchoa from Pata de Pajaro captured during a night survey.	Entrance to Reserva Lalo Loor which is a dry-humid transitional forest. Managed by the Ceiba Foundation, this is an example of conservation efforts in Ecuador. This site is approximately 200 hectares of private land set aside as a preserve under a 25-year agreement with the landowner (http://www.ceiba.org/loor.htm)	Trail leading to the entrance of the station house at Reserva Lalo Loor. This served as our living quarters and laboratory.

Hypsiboas rosenbergi, a species of gladiator frogs. Males are larger than females and become combative over breeding areas.	One of the herps I had really hoped to see. Micrurus bocourti, a venomous coral snake found at night along a small stream at Reserva Lalo Loor.	Epipedobates maculatus, a small frog observed on the ground along the trail during the day near the Lalo Loor station house. A dendrobatid (“poison frogs”), this is a male with tadpoles on its back.	All participants were required to wear a tarantula on their faces (just kidding). We observed several during both expeditions. The legs of this one matched my eyeglass strap.	Bunk room at Lalo Loor station house. Dry bags, insect repellent and mosquito netting…all must haves for these expeditions.	Howler monkeys near the Lalo Loor station house. It was really interesting to hear them calling the first time. After that, it became a lot of racket – day or night.

Arrival at the entrance to the Reserva Jama-coaque following a challenging hike. This humid rainforest-cloud forest reserve contains approximately 165 hectares under the management of the nonprofit organization Third Millennium Alliance	My favorite bufonid, Rhinella marinus aka cane toad or marine toad on a trail at Reserva Jama-coaque.	One of my favorite experiences was observing this snake, Pseustes shropshireii. This large, very colorful, diurnal and primarily arboreal snake was found in rafters of the Jama-coaque station house (the station house had no doors or windows). Non-venomous but had an attitude similar to our racers.	Thecodactylus rapicauda, a type of gecko found at Reserva Jama-coaque.

Tim Christensen's Ecuador Adventure