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Wonderland.
7 days; 29 species of herps....
Melbourne wildlife demonstrator Vince Pintaudi and a
bunch of mates head to the ‘Red Centre’ to tick as many
species off the bucket list as possible.
M
y introduction to herping around Alice Springs came about two years ago,
when Jack Hawkins and I spent about a week in the area. We were a little
fortunate in that well-known herper Greg Fyfe, who spent many years in Alice
Springs but moved to Victoria some time ago, was back in town doing some contract
work at the Alice Springs Desert Park. Greg gave us some of his top spots to search for
herps, and also went out with us a couple of times. Likewise, Rex Neindorf, the owner
of the Alice Springs Reptile Centre, helped out by sharing some of his herping hot
spots. We saw a total of between 20 and 25 species on that trip, but we knew we had to
go back. Partly because we didn’t see any pythons apart from Stimson’s Pythons, or
any larger elapids, but also because we had such a great time – the place is a mecca for
herpers.