Extremadura, 02.-09.11.2024

A late autumn trip to Central Spain has pros and cons – and of course it strongly depends on the weather conditions. Regarding that, we were lucky: After some rainfalls in October, early November was mostly warm and sunny. However, at this late season, some reptile species already had disappeared to hibernation. But this was compensated by the beginning amphibian activity, as rivers and ponds were filled with water. As we only had few dedicated herping spots, we had to search at random, but overall, we still came across 20 herp species.

Furthermore, the areas visited are famous for their avian wildlife with some remarkable bird species. Watching the cranes (Grus grus) in the Extremadura plains was an unforgettable experience.

Here is what we found.

Our first station was Trujillo in the Cáceres province – the hometown of some notorious conquistadores which were looting the indigenous cultures of South America. Besides of that, the fortress of Trujillo hosts the southernmost population of the Guadarrama wall lizard (Podarcis guadarramae). The adjoining Llanos de Cáceres – a pseudo-steppe with endless pastures – is famous for its avifauna. Although we missed the spectacular birds like the Great Bustard (Otis tarda), we encountered some nice herp species there: Iberian ribbed newt (Pleurodeles waltl), natterjack toad (Epidalea calamita), Iberian water frog (Pelophylax perezi), Spanish pond turtle (Mauremys leprosa), Geniez’ wall lizard (Podarcis virescens), large psammodromus (Psammodromus algirus), viperine snake (Natrix maura), ladder snake (Rhinechis scalaris). Some tadpoles in a small river turned to be presumably larvae of the Iberian midwife toad (Alytes cisternasii).

Heading south, we had a stop-over in the Montanchez mountains. In the high altitudes autumn temperatures prevented all reptile activity and the omnipresent dry-stone walls along the roads hindered us in exploring the area. However, at the foothills of that mountains we visited a nice place with a water source and a small creek. Here we found the southern marbled newt (Triturus pygmaeus) as well as Bosca's newt (Lissotriton boscai) which already showed mating behavior. The surrounding stone oak forests with their granite rocks where populated by some Podarcis virescens, some of them showing remarkably strong patterns. We wish we could have spent more time there.

The central Badajoz province has a long history and today, it is intensively used for agriculture. Here, we visited the Roman monuments in the cities of Medellin and Mérida. From a naturalist perspective, the Roman bridge over the Guadiana River in Mérida turned quite attractive: The beautiful river shores were populated by numerous sea birds like cattle egrets (Bubulcus ibis) and cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo); the river was full of introduced pond sliders (Trachemys scripta). The old walls were occupied by Moorish geckos (Tarentola mauritanica) and horseshoe whip snakes (Hemorrhois hippocrepis).

Close to the city, the Parque Natural de Cornalvo was our next goal where we hoped for more wildlife encounters. However, herping wasn’t too fruitful there. The only species found were Natterjack toad, Spanish pond turtle, Geniez’ wall lizard and ladder snake.

East of Mérida, there is a great plane called “La Serena” – a remarkable place with dead straight roads leading through dry steppe, endless meadows with the characteristic Merino sheep. An empty landscape. The excellent book of Gabi Martínez (“A real change – un cambio de verdad”) inspired us to visit this area. One wouldn’t expect any wildlife there, but these “Dehesas” are the perfect place for birders. La Serena has one of the biggest lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) populations in Spain. And at the time of our stay, numerous cranes arrived from central Europe to rest here during winter. An impressive scenery. Besides of that, we also encountered some herptiles like Iberian water frog, western spadefoot (Pelobates cultripes), Mediterranean tree frog (Hyla meridionalis), Spanish pond turtle, West-Iberian psammodromus (Psammodromus occidentalis), Geniez’ wall lizard, ocellated lizard (Timon Lepidus), viperine snake. In a small creek we already found big and well-developed larvae of the southern marbled newt. Cruising through this open, almost deserted landscape was a great experience, a taste of Central Asia with a shot of Serengeti safari – we already miss it!