Chad Keates Archives
On August the 24th I attended at the ECPTA (Eastern Cape Parks Tourism Association) Field Rangers Day at Thomas Baines Nature Reserve, to showcase some of the reptiles found in the Albany area. I represented ZEML (Zoology and Entomology Molecular Lab) along with my supervisor; Dr Shelley Edwards and my lab colleague Anthony Evlambiou. We were also joined by members of CBC (Centre for Biological Control), who showcased some of the invasive… Read More
Whether you call them whip snakes, grass snakes or sand snakes, what these snakes all have in common is that they are slender, gorgeous and lightning quick. This post is dedicated to all the snakes from the sub-family Psammophiinae, that are found in the Eastern Cape. This group is large and incredibly diverse, with members of this sub-family being found from the tip of South Africa, all the way to India. While… Read More
At midday on the 1st of August I travelled to Pumba Private Game Reserve, about 20km from Grahamstown, and presented a talk on the ‘Frogs and Lizards of Albany’ for Rangers working at the reserve. The talk started with a short summary of both reptiles and frogs, and was followed by tips on how to identify the frogs, lizards and tortoises found in the area. The talk was well received and at… Read More
On the 31st of July I travelled to Sibuya Game Reserve, about 10km from Kenton-on-Sea, and presented two herpetological talks for rangers working at the reserve. The first talk focussed on the ‘Snakes of Albany’ and the second talk focussed on the ‘Frogs and Lizards of Albany’. Both talks were well received with almost all the rangers taking the opportunity to handle the non-venomous snakes on display. Thanks goes to Sibuya Private… Read More
At midday on the 4th of July I travelled to Pumba Private Game Reserve, about 20km from Grahamstown, and presented a talk on the ‘Snakes of Albany’ for Rangers working at the reserve. The talk started with a short summary of reptiles, and was followed by basic snake identification and snakebite treatment. The talk was well received and at the end, the Rangers took the opportunity to hold some of the non-venomous… Read More
On Saturday the 2nd of June I did a snake awareness talk for the Friends of Waters Meeting Nature Reserve at Ploughman Pub in Bathurst. The talk was well attended and furthermore, was exceptionally well received by the citizens of Bathurst. With an audience ranging in age from pre-schoolers to pensioners, it was challenging but incredibly enjoyable. I spoke about different scorpions, the snakes of Albany, snake myths and lastly, snakebite and… Read More
In March of this year, I played my final game of the season for Manley Flats Cricket Club. The teams consisted of a mix-match of both first team and second team players and was great fun for all involved. Although I spend much of my time buried in the world of herpetology, I do take breaks every now and then to do the other things that give me joy. One of those… Read More
In march of this year I was asked to do a snake demonstration for students of Graeme the demonstration took place in the hostel, after hours, and the audience consisted of both primary and high-school kids. While some of the guys had seen and handled snakes in the past, many had not, making it a very special occasion for some of the guys. All in all, it was great evening filled with… Read More
This list contains all the snakes that can be found in the Eastern Cape. Several species have not been added to the list as I do not have good photos of them at this time. Snakes such as the black mamba, green mamba and vine snake have not been added to this list as they are only present at the southern border between Kwazulu Natal and Eastern Cape, and thus have a… Read More
Chad Keates 