Presentation in Dortmund about Kenya

Presentation in Dortmund about Kenya

by Alex Negro Reiseberichte Live lectures

On Friday, 6 February 2026, Rolf Mätzkow will give a richly illustrated lecture about an exciting journey in Kenya. And chameleons will not be neglected!

Kenya attracts visitors not only with its high biodiversity, but also with its diverse landscapes. The short herpetological tour takes viewers via Naivasha to the Kakamega Rainforest, Kenya’s only tropical (lowland) rainforest. Further along the route, the chameleon-rich heights of Njoro invite you to stop off before the journey continues to Mount Kenya National Park – and not just for the chameleons. Of course, the savannah landscape is a must on this tour, and so Tsavo National Park, with its snakes, lizards and tortoises, fits seamlessly into our tour concept. A visit to the coastal landscape of Watamu, where we finally get to see coral skinks, brings this short tour to a harmonious close.

Rolf Mätzkow Kenya – a herpetological round trip [German]
DGHT Stadtgruppe Dortmund
Restaurant Olympia – Zur alten Post
Im alten Dorf 2
59192 Bergkamen
Lecture begins at 7.30 p.m.

Photos: Collage by Rolf Mätzkow accompanying the lecture

Presentation in Frankfurt about Madagascar

Presentation in Frankfurt about Madagascar

by Alex Negro Reiseberichte Live lectures Science

The DGHT Frankfurt is kicking off the new year with a highlight. Thanks to a visit home, they are fortunate to welcome Rainer Dolch from the Association Mitsinjo in Andasibe, Madagascar. On Friday, 9 January 2026, he will give a detailed lecture on Madagascar and its herpetological diversity.

Madagascar’s amphibians and reptiles inhabit a wide variety of habitats, from lowland forests to the highest mountain peaks, karst areas, dry forests and unique semi-deserts. Madagascar’s long isolation after the break-up of the supercontinent Gondwana, its geography and the enormous diversity of its habitats have promoted evolutionary processes that have produced numerous endemic species of amphibians and reptiles. Many of these taxa are allopatric and microendemic, meaning they are restricted to very small, confined areas. Endemic families such as the Madagascar frogs (Mantellidae), the Madagascar snakes (Pseudoxyrhophiidae) and the Madagascar iguanas (Opluridae) have each undergone major radiation. A wide variety of legless skinks and some of the world’s rarest turtles also belong to the island’s extraordinary herpetofauna. Finally, Madagascar is a hotspot for chameleon diversity. In the chameleon genus Calumma in particular, many cryptic species have only recently been described which, although they look almost identical externally, are genetically so different that they can no longer reproduce with each other. Many of the amphibians and reptiles native to Madagascar and the habitats they inhabit are presented, as are the threats they face and measures taken to protect them.

Dr. Rainer Dolch Microendemism, cryptic species, fascinating diversity: a tour d’horizon through the herpetofauna of Madagascar [German]
DGHT city group Frankfurt
Zoo school of Frankfurt zoo
Bernhard-Grzimek-Allee 1
60316 Frankfurt am Main

Lecture begins at 7 p.m., doors open at 6:30 p.m. via the exit gate at the main entrance on Alfred-Brehm-Platz (gate between the zoo shop and the zoo society building).

Photos: Herpetological diversity of Madagascar, photographed by Rainer Dolch