# The Pilbara, WA



## smacdonald (May 19, 2008)

Hi all,

This the final installment from my WA trip. Earlier episodes:

The Pinnacles and Lesueur National Park

Numbat alert!

Perth Zoo

Tiger snakes

Into the Rat's nest

Shark Bay

Monkey Mia and Hamelin Pool

Cape Range National Park and Exmouth

In this exciting episode, join our intrepid adventurers as they battle dragons, serpents, the public health system and much, much more!

On the way from Cape Range to Karijini we drove though a lot of spinifex country and saw a number of dragons dashing off the road as we went by. We stopped and tracked one down to find it was a ring-tailed dragon (_Ctenophorus caudicinctus_).



Ring-tailed dragon (_Ctenophorus caudicinctus_).




Ring-tailed dragon (_Ctenophorus caudicinctus_) habitat.

On the way into Tom Price (the town closest to Karijini) we had a look at a lookout. At the top were piles of rocks with 'in memoriam' inscriptions on them. These rocks are apparently placed here to honour those that have died in the local mines.




A rock pile memorial on top of a hill near Tom Price. The writings on the rocks honour those people who have died in the nearby mines.




Some rocks honour other, non-mining related tragedies..

The sun went down before we got to town, so we drove the last 30 minutes or so in the dark. This worked out well as we saw a number of cool reptiles on the road, including the other snake I'd come to Western Australia for, the pygmy python (_Antaresia perthensis_).




Pygmy python (_Antaresia perthensis_), the world's smallest python..




Pygmy python (_Antaresia perthensis_).

I also added another spiny-tailed gecko to my list when we found a _Strophurus wellingtonae_.




Strophurus wellingtonae.

Sadly, there were a number of dead or dying snakes on the road, such as a western brown snake (_Pseudonaja nuchalis_) and this orange-naped snake (_Furina ornata_).




Road-killed orange-naped snake (_Furina ornata_).

We also found a still-writhing Pilbara death adder (_Acanthophis wellsi_).




This Pilbara death adder (_Acanthophis wellsi_) had just been hit by a car. We crushed its head to put it down..

Dean grabbed a nearby rock and went to crush its head to put it out of its misery. As he did so, the snake flinched and brushed against his hand. We weren't sure if he'd been bitten or not, so we bandaged his arm and headed to the Tom Price hospital. Thankfully we were only a few minutes away from town by this stage. We rocked up at the hospital and told them they story. Dean wasn't showing any signs of envenomation so they took the bandage off and monitored his vital signs. After a few minutes of normality the nurse was satisfied that Dean hadn't been bitten, so we left.

It was a bit late to make it to Karijini so we headed to the nearby caravan park and set up camp. Because we'd had such a good haul on the road we decided to head back out and see what else was active. We soon came across a sleeping ring-tailed dragon (_Ctenophorus caudicinctus_).




Ring-tailed dragons (_Ctenophorus caudicinctus_) often sleep on the road at night..

As we were photographing it Dean saw a snake crossing the road ahead so we all sprinted up to find a beautifully patterned Stimson's python (_Antaresia stimsoni_) arcing up in our presence.




Stimson's python (_Antaresia stimsoni_).




Stimson's python (_Antaresia stimsoni_).

Back at the caravan park we found a Main's arid frog (_Cyclorana maini_) and finally went to sleep.




Main's arid frog (_Cyclorana maini_).

The next day we got the local gossip at the Tom Price visitors' centre before heading out to Karijini National Park.




Welcome to Karijini!

Whilst driving around we came across a central military dragon (_Ctenophorus isolepis isolepis_).




Central military dragon (_Ctenophorus isolepis isolepis_).

We set up camp and headed to Dales Gorge. It's quite weird to drive through fairly flat, dry and featureless land and then suddenly come across a huge gash in the earth filled with beautiful blue water. Dales Gorge is home to Fortescue Falls, the park's only permanent water fall.




Dale's Gorge, Karijini National Park.




Dale's Gorge, Karijini National Park.




Dale's Gorge, Karijini National Park.

The rocks surrounding the creek were home to many little russet snake-eyed skinks (_Cryptoblepharus ustulatus_).




Russet snake-eyed skink (_Cryptoblepharus ustulatus_).




Russet snake-eyed skink (_Cryptoblepharus ustulatus_).

This is a newly described species of snake-eyed skink, split off from _Cryptoblepharus plagiocephalus_ in Paul Horner's review of the genus. These little skinks no doubt become fodder for the yellow-spotted monitors (_Varanus panoptes_) cruising around the gorge.




Yellow-spotted monitor (_Varanus panoptes_).




Argiopes spider in web.

That night we went for a drive and found a nice big Pilbara death adder (_Acanthophis wellsi_), a tiny little Stimson's python (_Antaresia stimsoni_) and a very scared little button-quail (_Turnix velox_).




Pilbara death adder (_Acanthophis wellsi_).




Juvenile stimson's python (_Antaresia stimsoni_).




A little button-quail (_Turnix velox_) on the road at night. He looks a little scared.

The next day we headed to the other side of Dales Gorge to have a look at Fern Pool. Along the way Dean spotted an _Egernia formosa_ sticking his head out of a log.




Goldfields crevice-skink (_Egernia formosa_).




An old, gnarly tree in one of the Karijini gorges.




One of the many pools at the bottom of one of the many gorges in Karijini.

Fern Pool was simply gorgeous. We obviously weren't the only ones who thought this, as there was a large yellow-spotted monitor (_Varanus panoptes_) patrolling the top of a rock face.




Yellow-spotted monitor (_Varanus panoptes_).




Yellow-spotted monitor (_Varanus panoptes_). They stand up when they want to get a better look at you.

The next day we headed across the park to Weano Gorge. We wanted to be there at sunset, but we got there early enough to explore the gorge during the daylight. We climbed down into the gorge and went as far as we could. Along the way I found a black-headed monitor (_Varanus tristis_) in a rock crevice.




A gorge in Karijini National Park.




Black-headed monitor (_Varanus tristis_).

We ended up in a small but deep pool that had hundreds of desert tree frogs (_Litoria rubella_) lining the edges.




Desert tree frog (_Litoria rubella_).

Farhan found a little _Delma borea_ that had evidently fallen over the edge or been washed down from further up the gorge. We put it in a sock to carry it to more suitable habitat.




Delma borea, a legless lizard..

As it neared dark we headed back up the gorge. Along the way we saw a heap of _Egernia formosa_ scurrying about, a narrow-banded sand-swimmer (_Eremiascincus fasciolatus_), a huntsman with stripes on his legs and a small mulga snake (Pseudechis australis) cruising between Farhan's legs.




Egernia formosa.




Narrow-banded sand-swimmer (_Eremiascincus fasciolatus_).




Narrow-banded sand-swimmer (_Eremiascincus fasciolatus_).




Zebra huntsman.

Up on top of the gorge we found the largest Burton's legless lizard (_Lialis burtonis_) I've ever seen, along with a Pilbara dtella (_Gehyra pilbara_).




A massive Burton's legless lizard (_Lialis burtonis_).




Burton's legless lizard (_Lialis burtonis_).




Pilbara dtella (_Gehyra pilbara_).

On the drive back to the camp we found a centralian blue-tongued skink (_Tiliqua multifasciata_) on the road.




Centralian blue-tongued skink (_Tiliqua multifasciata_).

On our last day went to another gorge where we finally saw a Pilbara rock monitor (_Varanus pilbarensis_).




Pilbara rock monitor (_Varanus pilbarensis_).




Pilbara rock monitor (_Varanus pilbarensis_).




A gorge in Karijini NP.

We left the gorge at about 2 PM and started the long drive home. Along the way we saw a dingo dragging a kangaroo carcass off the road, but we were too slow to get a picture of it with the carcass.




Dingo (_Canis familiaris_).

We arrived back in Perth at about 6 AM the next morning. I headed back to Brisbane a few days later.


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## vs380kw (May 19, 2008)

great pics nice job thanks for sharing


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## jaih (May 19, 2008)

awsome pics


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## redbellybite (May 19, 2008)

i travelled oz back in 1997 to 2000 with my 4 kids 2 dogs and a pet rat oh and hubby he drove the bus that was 38 ft long and i drove the work truck (holden one tonner)even to this day my kids still talk about the trip and what we saw ,we did the coastal run and headed inland in a few states and territory but our main aim was to travel around the coast we started in a town called Young in NSW and headed up the east coast my hubby is a carpenter so he got work as we travelled around i home school 'd ,my kids ages were 6,8,9 and 11 but eventually it drove us mental so we put them into the local school where ever we were at the time and this was far better because they liked the interaction with the other kids great learning experience wasnt worried so much about the kids missing out on maths and english as my kids were getting the best science lesson anyone couldve wanted .i loved it and highly recommend it to anyone that has kids or not just do it before your grey and old ......


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## Chris.j (May 19, 2008)

Great photos. I really like the photos where the animal isn't the total focus of the picture.


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## Aslan (May 19, 2008)

*Stewart *- Your photos are inspiring - after this thread the Pilbara region has definately taken top place on my dream destinations...

...that stimsoni is absolutely amazing, let alone the views of those gorges and a Pilbara Rock Monitor! Unbelievable...


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## Ducky (May 19, 2008)

Awesome shots Stewart, I've been wanting to check out the Pilbra region for as long as I can remember, now I just might. Thanks for sharing mate.


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## moloch05 (May 19, 2008)

Stewart,

You have so many wonderful photos there. My son and I visited Karijini in Nov, 2005, and I will prepare a post of this. We saw similar species but missed some of the beauties that you encountered. Pygmy Python was high on our wish list but we were unsuccessful.

I am glad to see the id of the Cryptoblepharus. We saw those little skinks but I did not know what they were. They had the shape of Cryptos but the colour and pattern was unlike anything in the field guides. Someone else suggested Ornate Skink but the body form, habits and habitat all seemed wrong. 

I still have a couple that I am unsure about. What do you think these might be?

Maybe _Diporiphora valens_?







Maybe Desert Cave Gecko (_Heteronotia spelea_), from Weano Gorge -- or is this some sort of oddly marked _H. binoei_? Nick and I found a number of these on the walls of the gorge.





Thanks,
David


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## krusty (May 20, 2008)

looks like you had a great herping trip,thanks for all the great pics.


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## urodacus_au (May 20, 2008)

Very nice Stewart, a part of the world you could explore for 10 years and still find things to keep you interested.

Cheers
Jordan


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## reptile32 (May 20, 2008)

nice pics mate looks like it was great trip. how long where you away for .


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## ben1200 (May 20, 2008)

awesome pics thanks for sharing hopefully will get there some day


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## cracksinthepitch (May 20, 2008)

Brilliant Photos Stewart, thanx for making me jealous


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## smacdonald (May 20, 2008)

reptile32 said:


> how long where you away for .



I was in WA for about a month. The Shark Bay-Exmouth-Pilbara leg was about 12 days. It was an awesome trip, and I could have stayed there for another month and still only barely scratched the surface.


Stewart


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## levis04 (May 20, 2008)

did you see any wheeleri on the trip at all?


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## smacdonald (May 20, 2008)

levis04 said:


> did you see any wheeleri on the trip at all?



Nope. Everything I saw is pictured, apart from a lone _Ctenotus pantherinus_ that dashed off before I got the camera out.


Stewart


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## longirostris (May 20, 2008)

Hi Moloch05

The dragon in your first picture is a female Long Nosed Water dragon. There is some current debate over the genus either Amphibolurus or Lophognathus, most current publications use the genus Amphibolurus. The species is longirostis. She looks like she has some loose skin or slightly stretched skin around her flanks and a slight loss of conditioning suggesting to me that she may have just prior to the photo being taken laid a clutch of eggs.

It is not D.valens although it is not hard to see why you thought it might be.

Can not help you with the Gecko, I only keep dragons including this species.

Cheers 

quote=moloch05;1157617]Stewart,

You have so many wonderful photos there. My son and I visited Karijini in Nov, 2005, and I will prepare a post of this. We saw similar species but missed some of the beauties that you encountered. Pygmy Python was high on our wish list but we were unsuccessful.

I am glad to see the id of the Cryptoblepharus. We saw those little skinks but I did not know what they were. They had the shape of Cryptos but the colour and pattern was unlike anything in the field guides. Someone else suggested Ornate Skink but the body form, habits and habitat all seemed wrong. 

I still have a couple that I am unsure about. What do you think these might be?

Maybe _Diporiphora valens_?






Maybe Desert Cave Gecko (_Heteronotia spelea_), from Weano Gorge -- or is this some sort of oddly marked _H. binoei_? Nick and I found a number of these on the walls of the gorge.





Thanks,
David[/quote]


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## della91 (May 20, 2008)

Hey, thanx for that... it was very entertaining and your guys took lovely photo's.
keep up the great documenting!


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## skakavacjakovac (May 20, 2008)

Gerat photography there...Love your work!! Thanks 4 sharing!!


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## PilbaraPythons (May 20, 2008)

Here is a pic of a typical Diporiphora winneckei from the Pilbara for some sort of comparision.

CXheers Dave


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## Magpie (May 20, 2008)

The gecko looks a lot like a ring tailed gecko, C. louisadensis.


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## urodacus_au (May 21, 2008)

The gecko looks like H spelea to me, have found them around Panawonnica in the past.

Cheers
Jordan


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## eipper (May 22, 2008)

that is is h. spelea

Cheers,
Scott


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## natrix (May 22, 2008)

Fantastic pics , thanks !
Amazing that there's only a couple of pages of reply to these , I'd bet that if I put up a.....
'Do you eat McDonalds' thread , it'd be 5 pages in no time...


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## moloch05 (May 22, 2008)

Thanks, all, for the help with the gecko and the dragon identification. 

Magpie, the geckos do resemble ring-tails in pattern but they are not as large nor are they so agile and fast.

Regards,
David


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## gonff (Aug 26, 2008)

wow! love the desert cave gecko! awsome as!

no the gecko is defenately a desert cave gecko, pretty positive!

also called '' H.spelea''


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## omg_a_gecko (Aug 27, 2008)

Could your unidentified gecko be a Ring-tailed Gecko? _(Cyrtodactylus louisiadensis)_


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## ryanharvey1993 (Aug 27, 2008)

Cyrtodactylus louisiadensis is only found in north eastern qld


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## Boney (Aug 27, 2008)

those photos are unreal. they should be in a book ! i realy like all the stimo pics and the pygmy python , like the monitors to . theres something about those photos you almost feel like your there !


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## jessb (Aug 27, 2008)

What incredible pics!I must have missed this thread the first time around, so thanks for bumping it gonff!

I love the pygmy python - were you really lucky to see one? Or are they less rare than I think? 

And seeing the Stimmies in their natural habitat is just incredible. Their colours just fit so perfectly against the red rock. We have a juvie Broome Stimmie at home and I can't wait to take her out of her click clack now and put her in her big enclosure with her red desert rock climbing wall!


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## Tim.Arm (Aug 27, 2008)

*Awsome shoot's mate, thanks for sharin.*


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## smacdonald (Aug 27, 2008)

jessb said:


> I love the pygmy python - were you really lucky to see one? Or are they less rare than I think?



Hi Jess,

We found those two on the drive into Tom Price. I have no idea how commonly they're found, but I don't think they're rare.

Stewart


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## Palex134 (Sep 1, 2008)

Beautiful shots, Dale's Gorge looks incredible and beautiful Varanid photos.


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