African Herp News ':'-o 27 April 199" AfricanHerpNewsNo.21 April 1998

multimocular.a (W. R. Branch, in Jin. REFERENCES Pwynton, J.C, & Broadley, D.G. 1988. Kasuo 1630BD August !993~ Amphibia Za.mbesiaca 4. Bufonidae. Lower Dande River 1630BA Branch, W. R & Haagner, G. V. .A.I. Natal Mus. 29(2): 447-490. Mahuwe, 7 IO km NNW 1630BC It is opportune, in ,iew of the growing (] 993 ). New records from three Mana-Angwa Camp interest in biogeography and southern national parks. Koedoe 35:59- Timberlake, J.R, Nobanda, N., & (Chewore Safari Area) 1630M biology, to point out that our record of Mapaure, L I 993. Vegetation survey of Marirangwe Range 1630M Fisk·s House Snake from Tierberg is 60. the communal lands - north and west Mashumbi Pools 1630BA based on a misidentification, and that Zimbabwe. Separate from Kirlda 14(2) 9 & 20 km W ofMashurnbi there is still no positive record of its Milton, S. J., Dean, W. R J. & Sheet 2. Pools 1630AB occurrence in the Prince Albert area. Kerley, G. LR (1992). Tierberg K.aroo Mukanga Bridge, Research Centre: history, physical APPENDIX & 10& 18km SE 1630M environment, flora and vertebrate fauna. Mururuzi Bridge 1630AB Trans. Roy. Soc. S. Afr. 48:15-46. List of localities \\ith quarter-degree Musengezi Bridge 1630BD references. Muzarabani West (Musengezi River) 1630BD Dande Safari Area 1530CD Nnunbe Ri"er (Chewore Ganono 1630BB Safari Area) 1630AA 6 km W of Gwase flygate 1630BA Nyamurombwe, Zumbo UNUSUAL FEEDING BEHAVIOUR OF THE COMMON ROUGH­ Kadzi Bridge 16308B District, Moz.ambique 1530DA SCALED LIZARD (ICHNOTROPIS SQUAMULOSA) IN CAPTIVITY Kanyemba 1530CB Zumbo, Mozambique 1530CB 151cm S ofKanyemba 1530CD S.B.F.N. Bering-Hagenbeck lnsrirure for Molecular Parasiro/ogy, Humboldr Universiry, Berlin. Presenr address: Depanmenr of Vererinary Parhologv, Medical University of Southern Afn·ca, P.O. Box 59, Medunsa 0204, South .

FISK'S HOUSE SNAKE (LAMPROPHIS FISKJI BOULENGER) FROM THE PRINCE ALBERT AREA: A CORRECTION The Rough-scaled Lizard, lchnorropis Six adult specimens of the Common squamu/osa, is a small-headed, Rough-scaled Lizard were caught in S. J. Milton and W. R J. Dean medium-sized lizard that is an active traps in the Molopo Nature Reserve hunter of the sandy areas in the arid and (25o 40'S, 220 49'E) in the North-West Percy FirzPatrick Jnsn'tute, University ofCape Tovm, mesic sa\'annah (Branch J 994 ). The diet Province, South Africa. They were Rondebosch, 7700, S(Jl,lth Africa consists mainly of termites, but brought to the laboratory in Pretoria and grasshoppers, beetles and other insects kept in a 140 x 34 x 33 cm terrarium are also taken. These lizards grow together with six subadult Bushveld In a recent paper on the fauna and flora including a recent record from Beaufort rapidly and are known as "annuals"; it Lizards, Heliobolus lugubris, and four of the Tierberg study site, near Prince West (Branch & Ha.agner 1992). It is is unusual for an indi,idual to live adult Kalahari Tree Skinks, Mabuya Albert, in the southern Karoo (Milton, thus likely that Fisk's House Snake longer than J 3 to 14 months. The spilogaster, which were captured at the Dean & Kerley 1992), we listed Fisk' s could occur in the Prince Albert area. females die soon after laying 8 - 12 eggs same locality. The bottom of the House Snake Lamprophis fiskii as However, Dr W. R Branch of the Port during April and May. terrarium was partly covered \\-ith sand occurring on the site. Fisk's House Elizabeth Museum bas informed us that and partly with gravel, and a few stones Snake is ex"trcmely rare and is only the snake we observed and listed (and The habitat of J. squamulosa is shared and twigs were placed inside. Heat and known from approximately 12 photographed, but did not collect) was \\ith a few other Jacertids of more or light were supplied by a 100 W bulb specimens collected from scattered incorrectly identified, and was in fact a Jess similar size, resulting in which was installed on top of the tank. localities in the western Karoo, Dwarf Beaked Snake Dipsina competition for food (Jacobsen J 987). The were fed once a day \\ith

13 12 African Herp News No. 27 April I 998 AfriconHerpNews No 27 April 1998

insects, mostly grasshoppers, caught on for food that might result in aggressive the university campus. display or action between similarly sized individuals. LIFE HISTORY NOTES Two instances of cannibalism were observed in a period of three days. In the In this particular case, the H. lugubris African Herp News publishes brief notes concerning the biology of the herpetofauna first case an I. squamulosa V.'aS seen specimens (that were seen to be eaten) of the African continent and adjacent regions, including the Arabian peninsula, feeding on a H. lugubris which was were smaller than the /. squamulosa and Madagascar, and other islands in the Indian Ocean. swallowed v.ithin 90 seconds. Two days may therefore have appeared like later the same lchnotropis was found attractive prey. It is also possible that A standard format is to be used, as follows: SCIENTIFIC NAME; Common name dead with the posterior part of the H. because of the close confmement in the (using Bill Branch' s Field Guide to the and other ofSouthern lugubris protruding from the mouth, terrarium, this might have provoked the ) Africa, 1988, for reptiles; and Passmore & Carruthers' South African Frogs, 1995, indicating an unsuccessful attempt at I. squamulosa to attack the H. lugubris for amphibians, as far as possible); KEYWORD (this should be one or two words regurgitating the prey. which had no place to escape. best describing the topic of the note, e.g. Reproduction, Avian predation, etc.); the J Text (in concise English v.ith only essential references quoted and in abbreviated Three days later a female /. squamulosa Nevertheless the observed behaviour form); Locality (country, province or state, location, quarter-degree unit, and was seen chasing after a H. lugubn·s. could be an indication of the latitude and longitude if available; elevation above sea level; use metric units); Date The Bushveld Lizard was caught several competition between J. squamulosa and (day, month, year); Collector(s); Place of deposition and museum accession times by one of its legs, held for a while other lacertids in their natural number (required if specimens are preserved). Submitted. by: NAME, Address (in and then released again. After about five environment (Jacobsen 1987; Broadley parentheses). minutes the Heliobolus was caught at 1979). midbody and was vigorously shaken, New South African Province names must be used. which caused its bead to repeatedly ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS strike a stone. This lasted for about two minutes. The by now subdued H. Special thanks to Mr. Richard (Nissan) lugubris was then turned and S\Vallowed Newbery for providing the lizards, and ANURA 504 eggs respectively were collected at head-first, which took about five the Arthur & Aenne Feindt Foundation the Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve, minutes. It is worth mentioning that (Hamburg) for their fmancial support. PIPIDAE southern KwaZulu Natal (30o ]S'S, 300 shortly before this event happened, the 37'E; 3030BC). According to Wager REFERENCES I. squamulosa was offered a few KASS/NA SE.\'EGA.LE.1,iSIS ( 1986, Frogs of South Africa: their grasshoppers which were not taken. Bubbling Kassina fascinating life stories, Delta Books, Two days later the regurgitated carcass Branch, W.R 1994. Field Guide to the REPRODUCTION, CLUTCH SIZE Goodwood) and Duellman and Trueb of the H. lugubris was found in the Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern (1994, Biology of Amphibians, Johns terrariwn. Africa. Struik Publishers, Cape Tov.n. During the 1991 rainy season (October Hopkins University Press, London), to December) 12 Kassina senegalensis who refer to Wager, the largest recorded Jacobsen ( I 987) stated that there was Broadley, D. G. 1979. A field study of pairs were caught in amplexus at clutch size for K. senegalensis is 400 some competition for food between the sympatric "annual" lizards ( Bloemfontein, Free State (29o 05' 30"S, eggs. The Vernon Crookes record two South African of /chnotropis) in Rhodesia. S. Afr. J. 260 11 ' IO"E; 2926M) and brought to extends the knov.n clutch size record for Jchnotropis as the size difference Zoo/., 14: 133-138. the laboratory to complete the egg laying K. senegalensis by I 04 eggs. between them is rather small. The process. All the pairs were collected adults of H. lugubris and I squamulosa Jacobsen, N.RG. 1987. Notes on before egg laying started. The average Submitted. by: J.C.P. VANWYK (P.O. are also quite similar in size, the former reproduction in lchnotropis squamulosa size of the clutches was 316.92 (n = 12; Box 16, Frankfort 9830, South Africa), reaching a maxi.mum length of 22 cm and interspecific competition with I. SA = 87.26). The smallest clutch D.J. KOK & LR DU PREEZ and the latter 23 cm (Branch 1994 ). both capensis (Reptilia, Lacertidae) in the contained 128 eggs, while the two (Department of Zoology and these lizards favour the same kind of Transvaal. J. Herpetol. Assoc. Afr. 33: biggest clutches contained 426 and 464 Entomology, University of the Orange habitat which (although not reported in 13-17. eggs respectively. During the 1992/1993 Free State, P.O. Box 399, Bloemfontein the literature) could lead to competition breeding season two clutches of 484 and 9300, South Africa).

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