Presentation in Landau about Madagascar

Presentation in Landau about Madagascar

by Alex Negro Reiseberichte Live lectures

On Saturday, 21 March 2026, Patrick Schönecker will give a richly illustrated talk on Madagascar. And there will be plenty of cameleons to see!

Patrick Schönecker has been travelling to the island of Madagascar for 25 years, exploring numerous habitats across the country. In recent years, his travels have increasingly focused on the humid and semi-arid regions – with a particular emphasis on species hotspots and the last remaining areas of rainforest and dry forest. The result is a talk that documents Madagascar’s extraordinary biodiversity with impressive nature photographs, placing particular emphasis on the fascinating herpetofauna.

The lecture centres on two areas that are quite contrasting in terms of their natural environment: on the one hand, the rainforest belt around Andasibe, where a network of state and private protected areas ensures the connectivity of the eastern highlands. On the other hand, the remaining forests in the north of the island, whose limestone-rich landscapes have given rise to a multitude of local microhabitats and endemic species.

Although the focus is on the herpetofauna, our speaker does not overlook the enormous diversity of endemic mammals, insects and plants – and invites his audience on an impressive journey through the threatened natural paradises of one of the most unique islands on our planet.

Patrick Schönecker Madagascar’s fascinating world of reptiles and amphibians – insights into the biodiversity of the hotspots in the central highlands and north of the island [German]
DGHT regional group Kurpfalz
Reptilium Landau
Werner-Heisenberg-Straße 1
76829 Landau in der Pfalz
The lecture begins at 8.00 pm; doors open at 7.00 pm

Picture: Calumma parsonii parsonii, photographed by Patrick Schönecker

The flap-necked chameleon in northern Mozambique

The flap-necked chameleon in northern Mozambique

by Alex Negro Verbreitung Science

Scientists recently searched for reptiles in the municipality of Mocuba in northern Mozambique to compile an inventory of the species found there. They examined a so-called miombo dry forest (a type of sparse forest savannah with hardly any undergrowth) and a nearby granite rock called Mount Morué, which is only 361 metres high.

Over several months during the rainy and dry seasons, both habitats were searched for seven days at a time (42 days in total). The scientists used pitfall traps and searched with the naked eye during the day along predetermined transects. Reptiles were identified using existing field guides and with the help of experts. In addition, some animals were killed and added to the Zambezi University collection.

A total of 23 different reptile species were observed. Chamaeleo dilepis was found six times. All chameleons were found in the Miombo woodland and not a single chameleon was found on the granite rock of Mount Morué. Two chameleons were hunting for prey, while two others were still in a sleeping position when found early in the morning. Another lappet chameleon had ended up in a pit trap. The species is already known from many finds in Mozambique. However, no finds had been made in Mocuba until now.

Beyond the asymptote: a near-complete reptile inventory in the Miombo woodland and on Mount Morué, Mocuba Municipality, with a major range extension for the lizard Nucras boulengeri Neumann, 1900
Avelino R. Miguel, Berta I. Sitole, Nando A.M. Calonga, Celso H. Duarte, Dolescêncio Armando, Célia J.A. Nanvonamuquitxo, Hinrich Kaiser
Herpetology Notes 18: 1051-1071.
DOI: not available
Free article download

Photo: Chamaeleo dilepis in the Miombo Woodlands, photographed by Miguel Avelino