So I ended my last post in the description of the set up for the island introduction experiment at picking the islands based on google earth images. That obviously wasn’t enough, the next step was to get out there on the ground, assess the flora and fauna (most importantly to make sure that there weren’t already … More The initial island survey
A few posts ago I talked about the tough time I was having taking a picture of the undersides of these little lizards. Well, I have a new solution that seems to be working great! Credit goes to Dr. Herrel in Paris. My printer has a built in flat-bed scanner. Lizard, scanner – put the two together, … More Scanning lizards
The Oru Kayaks have been so helpful lately – I don’t think we could have done this without them! I think we’ve used the kayaks almost every day for the last two and a half weeks, and last week they took the team to seven islands in seven days! I’ve really enjoyed trying to get some … More The shot that sunk my GoPro
So I gave you the end of the story first with that last post. Now that we have the local permissions and federal permits in hand, and the experiment started, I want to tell you a bit about what all went into deciding just how to set up this experiment. It was a long process! This’ll take … More So how’d you pick the islands?
Hi Everyone, I’ve been somewhat silent on the blog about just what I’ve been doing over in Paros looking into experimental islets. It’s time to break that silence – we got our permits and I just introduced lizards to 5 small islands in the Cyclades! It’s been a long process of negotiations with the national and local governments … More And they’re off!
Now, when I really want to put something (or somebody) to sleep, my dissertation prospectus is pretty much the first thing I grab. Reading that thing aloud… well, does the trick. Sometimes though, especially in the case of my little lizards, it’s handy to have a trick to get them to go to sleep just a … More How to put a lizard to sleep
Whenever we’re hiking around on one of the big islands we’re always on the lookout for snakes. Some, because Vipera ammodytes is venomous, but for the most part, snakes on these islands are really interesting and a little uncommon. Any day that includes a snake in the field is a good day. I say big … More Natrix natrix
Actually, this is more of a cautionary tale… we definitely haven’t figured it out yet. Maybe watch the video of Angus’ efforts and let me know if you have suggestions. At the least, we’ve decided to next time remove the ink sac intact! Before: The process: After:
Sorry not to write recently. It’s crunch time in the field, we’re leaving in just a few weeks, and we have oodles of data still to collect! The research assistants are literally falling asleep where they sit every time they get a chance: I’d be sleeping too, but I’ll leave that for July. The … More Collecting data is more fun than sleeping anyway…
There isn’t a whole lot of fancy equipment necessary for my research (more’s the pity!). Last year I posted a description of the bite force meter I’ve been using. This year it’s back in action. You can see it here and click the link to read a bit more about how it works.The components have been “exploded” a … More Tools of the trade
Colin Donihue 