Chad Keates Archives
This list contains all the water snakes that can be found in and around water in the Grahamstown area. As the names suggest, this means that these snakes are usually found in close proximity to water because of their diets that mostly consist of frogs, tadpoles and fish. Although not as closely related to water as the other snakes on this list, the red-lipped herald has been listed at the end because it is closely associated with… Read More
Once again I found myself in Hogsback, and this time I was determined to catch and photograph (properly) the Amatola Flat Gecko (Afroedura amatolica). This trip to Hogsback was however not intended for herping or adventure but rather as a farewell for the Rhodes Zoology Honours class of 2016 who were staying on a nearby Hogsback farm for the weekend. Unlike my classmates who sought to study in the spare time between… Read More
This list includes all the green snakes that can be found in the Eastern Cape. Barring the boomslang (Dispholidus typus) and the many-spotted reed snake (Amplorhinus multimaculatus), all the individuals listed come from the genus Philothamnus and they are all closely related. In the Eastern Cape, the boomslang is not uniform green. Females are olive and males are green/yellow with black barring. Irrespective of this, the boomslang has been included at the end of… Read More
This weekend saw Luke and I on the road again. This time we traveled to a far more magical place – Hogsback, the home of fairies, hobbits and more importantly, Natal black Snakes. We had been to Hogback several months prior and in the grips of winter, we had found many species from a large range of taxa. Last weekend held much promise because unlike last time, it was summer. We were… Read More
Listed below are the skinks that you are most likely to see or find in and around Grahamstown. Family: Scincidae The Scincidae family is considered the most species-rich lizard family in the world. In South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland combined, there are 59 recognized species and several subspecies. Skinks are characterized by shiny overlapping scales and a cylindrical, robust body. Most skinks also feed on invertebrates and irrespective of whether they have limbs or not,… Read More
Yesterday, Luke and I conquered tick bite fever and to celebrate, we ventured to Alicedale in search of the elusive berg adder, a species of dwarf adder which has not been seen in the region for over 75 years. To give context to the story, we had been in Alicedale one week prior and whilst we did not find the fabled berg adder, we did manage to find pepper ticks, lots… Read More
The text in this submission was adapted from my project manuscript which was submitted as part of my Zoology Honours course. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) (Mart.) Solms-Laub, is an invasive South American water weed that was originally imported into South Africa more than 100 years ago because of its beauty as an ornamental plant in ponds and aquariums (Guillarmod 1979). Much like the other major invasive water weeds in South Africa, water… Read More
So now that winter is coming to an end, snakes and other reptiles are starting to become far more abundant. One species that has become particularly abundant in the last few weeks, is the puff adder (Bitis arietans). To give context, in the last week, I have come across three puff adders. Two of them were average-sized adult males and the the third was a very large, very pregnant, female puff adder, which… Read More
Today I accompanied Gareth to Kwandwe Private Game Reserve. He was looking for friends, because as I am sure you know, zoologists have few in the way of friends. Zoologists tend to keep to themselves, and when they do interact, they end up talking incoherently about the misconceptions of elephant-ecosystem interactions. Gareth is a prime example. But enough about that! Let’s rather talk about his project. Today he was setting up camera traps at Kwandwe Private Game… Read More
Chad Keates 