Unsere neueste CHAMAELEO steht in den Startlöchern!
On Saturday, 16 September 2023, Uwe Prokoph will give a lecture on a herpetological journey to the Western Sahara and the south of Morocco. Although the landscape there seems rather hostile at first glance, there is a lot to discover, especially in reptiles!
Uwe Prokoph Desert Wonderworlds
DGHT Stadtgruppe Kassel
House Schönewald
Wilhelmstraße 17
34233 Fuldatal
from 6 o’clock p.m.
Together with Jutta Dwinger, AG member Lars Dwinger will be giving a presentation full of pictures in Schleswig-Holstein on Friday, 15th September 2022. Last year, the two travelled to the north of Madagascar, which is known for its extreme biodiversity.
The journey begins in the Marojejy National Park, which stretches across the gorges and steep slopes of the mountain range of the same name. There you can see extremely rarely photographed chameleons, but also a great variety of frogs, snakes and geckos. Afterwards, the journey led via the east coast towns of Sambava and Vohémar to the dry forest of Daraina. The next stop was the world-famous Tsingys in Ankarana National Park. Even in these two dry forests, there is a lot of small and big life. The final stop was camping in the middle of a chameleon paradise: The Montagne d’Ambre in the far north of Madagascar. Between tiny earth chameleons that just fit on the tip of a finger and the gentle giants of the rainforest, the two Hamburgers encounter many fascinating creatures on this trip.
Lars und Jutta Dwinger Foray through four national parks in the north of Madagascar
Terrarien-Freunde-Hamburg e.V.
Vereinsheim des SC Condor
Berner Heerweg 188
22159 Hamburg
Start of the presentation at 6 p.m.
Picture: Brookesia betschi in Marojejy, photographed by Jutta Dwinger
On Friday, 19 May 2023, the renowned herpetologist Prof. Dr Wolfgang Böhme will give a lecture on herpetological expeditions in West Africa. In several research trips, he studied the large-scale habitats of desert, savannah, and rainforest and their respective marginal areas with regard to their amphibians and reptiles, whose current distribution reflects the influence of the major postglacial climate fluctuations. The rediscovery of the desert crocodile in the Mauritanian Sahara, thought to be extinct for decades, is just one of many highlights. In Guinea, the Lama Forest proved to be a snake hotspot: in just two weeks, the travellers were able to find 38 species sympatrically. In the Cameroon mountains, where relics of German colonial history can still be found several times, the previously unknown herpetological Mount Nlonako proved to be the most species-rich amphibian site in Africa at the time. The vertical zoning, combined with numerous watercourses, led to a great diversity of frog fauna, which was inventoried for the first time. With over 90 species, including the charismatic hairy and goliath frogs, Mount Nlonako is one of the richest amphibian hotspots in the Afrotropical region. The various, beautiful Montane Chameleons in Cameroon also proved to be an excellent model group to exemplify the process of speciation.
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Böhme Overland from Germany to Cameroon
DGHT City group Münster
Zoo school of Allwetterzoo
Sentruper Str. 315
48161 Münster
Admission from 6.30 p.m., lecture begins at 7 p.m.
On Friday, 12 May 2023, Sönke Frahm will hold his presentation “Uganda – Pearl of Africa” in Mönchengladbach/Krefeld. He will report on a trip to the East African country of Uganda, which is framed by South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya. The journey starts in Entebbe on Lake Victoria and from there to the Mitjanja District in search of snakes of the species Bitis and Atheris. Sönke then takes the visitor on a safari to the unique Queen Elisabeth National Park and for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale National Park. Afterwards, a visit to the famous mountain gorillas in Bwindi National Park is scheduled. The trip concludes in a swamp area at Lake Victoria to look for the charismatic Abu Markub, the “father of the shoe”. Sönke met several species of chameleons on the way – there are thirteen different ones in Uganda – and of course, photographed them. So if you want to enjoy an evening with not only herpetological impressions, the regional group Mönchengladbach/Krefeld is the place to be. The presentation is in German.
Sönke Frahm: Uganda – Perle Afrikas
DGHT Regional group Mönchengladbach/Krefeld
Gaststätte Hubertuseck
Hubertusstraße 27
47877 Willich-Schiefbahn
Lecture begins at 7.30 p.m.
Markus Grimm, a long-time member of the AG Chamäleons and entrusted for many years in Switzerland with conducting expert courses for chameleon keeping, will give a detailed lecture on the European Chameleon on 14 April 2023 in Winterthur (Switzerland).
The European Chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) in a way describes the archetype of the chameleon as such and thus has status character for the human conception of chameleons. The rather seldom-kept chameleon species makes some demands on keeping and breeding, which Markus was able to fathom during trips to the habitat as well as in captivity. After a short introduction, which includes systematics, Markus gives insights into the habitat of this chameleon in nature. In addition, the audience will learn the most important parameters for successful keeping and breeding in the terrarium. So it will definitely be very exciting – anyone interested in chameleons should definitely watch this lecture!
Markus Grimm The European Chameleon – Habitat, Keeping and breeding in captivity
DGHT City Group Winterthur
Restaurant “Rössli”
8405 Winterthur (Switzerland)
The presentation starts at 8:00 p.m.
Roland Zobel, a long-time member of the DGHT Dortmund City Group and self-confessed day gecko lover, will give a lecture full of pictures about a trip to the north of Madagascar on 07 April 2023 in Dortmund. There is much to discover in the north of the world’s second-largest island state, not only chameleons.
Roland Zobel Expedition Northern Madagascar
DGHT City group Dortmund
Restaurant “Olympia – Zur alten Post”
Im alten Dorf 2
59192 Bergkamen – Weddinghofen
Start of presentation 07.30 p.m.
Photo: Collage by Roland Zobel
The first chairman of the DGHT Landesverband Hamburg will give a lecture full of pictures about a journey to Namibia and western South Africa on 31 March 2023 in Hamburg. The travel goes from Cape Town to the Etosha National Park. Namibia, also called the “Land of Red Silence”, is one of the most fascinating and multifaceted countries on earth. Stops on Rüdiger’s journey included Namaqualand, which welcomed him in glorious blossom, several Namibian mountain ranges, the Namib around Swakopmund with a great reptile tour and a drive through the Welwitschia area, as well as the dune areas near Sossusvlei and the Fish River Canyon. Besides the large mammals of Etosha National Park, Rüdiger’s main focus on this breathtaking trip was, of course, the reptiles – and there were also a few chameleons to see. A firework for nature lovers!
Rüdiger Schlepper Namibia – In 22 days through the Southwest of Africa
DGHT Landesverband Hamburg
Vereinsgaststätte “Am Sportplatzring”
Sportplatzring 47
22527 Hamburg
Presentation starts at 8 pm
Photo: Flower carpet in Namaqualand, photographed by Rüdiger Schlepper
The spokeswoman of the AG Chamäleons will give a lecture rich in pictures about not only, but also very many chameleons on 13th January 2023 in Neunkirchen (Saarland). Madagascar, located in the Indian Ocean a good 400 km east of the African mainland, is known for its extremely high biodiversity. The absolute hot spots are on the east coast of the island – reason enough to set out on an adventure in the north of Madagascar!
The journey takes you from the capital Antananarivo to Maroantsetra by tiny plane. A gentle introduction to camping can be found on the island of Nosy Mangabe, part of Masoala National Park. The golden sandy beaches of the “island of the leaf-tailed geckos” tell tales of thieving lemurs, glowing scorpions and snakes, which are preferably found behind the makeshift kitchen. The plane then takes the travellers to Sambava, the secret capital of vanilla. On foot, the expedition heads to the sacred mountain massif of Marojejy. In the tropical heat, the steep gorges and constant climbs are not easy terrains. But Marojejy is a paradise for herpetologists: almost innumerable chameleons, geckos, snakes, insects and other creatures can be found here with a little luck and skill. Last but not least, the high altitudes of the mystical rainforest are also home to the “angels of the forest”, the endangered silky sifakas.
Afterwards, the journey continues somewhat more comfortably in an off-road vehicle: on the notorious RN5 via Vohémar into the dry forest of Loky Manambato – a dry contrast programme! Via Ambilobe, Ambanja and Ankarana, the last destination of the adventure trip beckons: The fantastic rainforest of the Montagne d’Ambre, a paradise for campers, chameleon lovers, frog lovers and snake freaks. On this trip, everyone gets their money’s worth – only luxury falls somewhat by the wayside.
Dr. Alexandra Laube Camping with Chameleons – Madagascar’s north east coast
DGHT Regionalgruppe Saar-Pfalz
Zoo school of Zoo Neunkirchen
Zoostraße 25
66538 Neunkirchen
Admission is from 6.30 p.m., lecture begins at 7 p.m.
Picture: Calumma guillaumeti in Marojejy, photographed by Dr. Alexandra Laube
The spokeswoman of the AG Chamäleons will be giving a visually stunning talk about not only, but also a great many chameleons on 21 October 2022 in Frankfurt am Main. Madagascar, located in the Indian Ocean a good 400 km east of mainland Africa, is known for its extremely high biodiversity. But the wild west of Madagascar is one thing above all: hot and dry. Nothing can really survive there – can it? The end of the rainy season is the best time to go herping in Madagascar: time to go where the pepper grows and see what the dry wild west is all about. A herpetological adventure!
The journey leads from the capital Antananarivo through the highlands to Ankarafantsika National Park, which, contrary to popular belief, has more to offer than just birds. Then it continues to the west coast town of Mahajanga on the Bay of Bombetoka. The opposite headland of Katsepy revealed one of its greatest secrets only two years ago with a chameleon thought to be extinct. Morondava, further south by the sea, is home to the famous Baobab Avenue. Not far from there is the Kirindy forest, where probably no animal is quite normal: a cathameral predator with clitoris bones, the world’s smallest mouse maki, a kangaroo rat, the shortest-lived chameleon on earth and a turtle called Kapidolo are just some of Kirindy’s strange inhabitants. From there, the journey continues off-road in the sand to the south, past the baobab forests of Andavadoaka to the beaches of Ifaty. In two spiny forests north and south of Toliara, day geckos, even more turtles and snakes can be found.
Dr Alexandra Laube The Wild West of Madagascar
DGHT City Group Frankfurt am Main
Zoo School of Frankfurt Zoo
Bernhard-Grzimek-Allee 1
60316 Frankfurt am Main
Admission is from 6.30 p.m., lecture begins at 7 p.m.
Photo: Furcifer voeltzkowi in Katsepy, photographed by Dr Alexandra Laube
On Friday, 21 October 2022, Sönke Frahm will hold his presentation “Uganda – pearl of Africa” in Münster. He will report on a trip to the East African country of Uganda, which is framed by South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya. The journey starts in Entebbe on Lake Victoria and from there to the Mitjanja District in search of snakes of the species Bitis and Atheris. Sönke then takes the visitor on a safari to the unique Queen Elisabeth National Park and for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale National Park. Afterwards, a visit to the famous mountain gorillas in Bwindi National Park is scheduled. The trip concludes in a swamp area at Lake Victoria to look for the charismatic Abu Markub, the “father of the shoe”. Sönke met several species of chameleons on the way – there are thirteen different ones in Uganda – and of course, photographed them. So if you want to enjoy an evening with not only herpetological impressions, Münster is the place to be. The presentation is in German.
Sönke Frahm: Uganda – Perle Afrikas
DGHT Stadtgruppe Münster
Zooschule des Allwetterzoos
Sentruper Str. 315
48161 Münster
Admission is from 6.30 p.m., lecture begins at 7 p.m.
