Hi everyone, I’m a little behind on the blog so the next several posts are going to be picture-heavy and text-light. I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve been so wrapped up with work lately that if I wait for time to write out all the stories in detail it’ll be about time to start … More Island hopping off of Amorgos
After the early morning run around to grab my insect traps, I immediately turned around to catch a boat to Aspronissi – a small islet off the coast of Naxos. The islet has one of the densest populations of erhardii anywhere in the area, so we wanted to be sure to check it out. We … More Aspronissi
There have been SO many lizards in my life these last few days. I’ve been collecting them by the handful. It turns out catching them is the easy part. Measuring all of them though takes hours! Here’s just a smattering I caught from one of my terraces.
Hi Everyone, Just a quick update to let you know I’m alive and well. Sorry for the long delay since last posting. I’ve quite literally been flat out every single day. Last week Tuesday thru Friday I was up and in the field at or before 6:00 am. I’m a herpetologist! We’re supposed to get … More Trap Collecting!
H everyone, All is well! I’ve had a busy few days though. I’ve decided on terraces, so now I am setting up an experiment looking at the insects, lizards and plants surrounding olive terraces in the Moni valley here on Naxos. I planted 12 pitfall traps and 8 sticky traps around each of 9 terraces … More A quick update
Y’all have been asking for details on the bite force meter I’ve been alluding too. Here are a few pictures to illustrate what I’ve been talking about. The meter was borrowed from and built by Anthony Herrel, a collaborator in Paris. at its core are two metal plates to the left of the picture where … More The Bite Force Meter
Every once in a while driving to my field sites I have to pull over, take a picture, and pinch myself that this is where I’m getting to work. The landscape here is really spectacular. Click on the link to see the picture at a larger size.
As I mentioned earlier I decided to make a few apple pies as a thank you, first to the family who invited me over to dinner for Greek Easter and another to the family living above me who has on several occasions brought me food, and now puts up with 8 Americans living below them. I … More Apple Pies
Here’s one of the five sand boas that friends and I have found over the last few days. I really like this picture, but the fun thing about it is that I was caught in the act of capturing it by Kinsey, another scientist here in Greece. You know how excited I get about snakes. Now … More Eryx jaculus
Sorry not to have more time to write. Research is in full swing and I’ve been busily hopping from island to island lately in search of lizards. I’m back on Naxos, setting up experiments for the summer. Soon, hopefully, I can share a few more stories of the day to day goings on. Until then, … More Hiking in Schoinoussa
Colin Donihue 