Fantastic post. Don't worry about it being down below. I think a new start, concentrating on the habitats of the island, is in order.



I was wondering about frenata. Schulz didn't list it for Taiwan, but I expected to see it there, since Taiwan has great habitat for it. You don't happen to have a pic of a Taiwanese speciman, do you?



Schulz didn't include Ptyas in his monograph ('96) of the Elaphe genus. They aren't considered to be as closely related as the other ratsnakes in the book, but rather a type of racer. It's nice to know they are there, however.



Your habitat/ecosystem descriptions are fabulous. That's just the kind of info I find very useful. I think, from looking at maps, there may be some plains on the west side of the island. I know the mtns are very close to the ocean on the east side and very precipitous. They can also be very high. Have you ever been skiing on the high slopes? I've read that temperate flora exist on high slopes too. Your farmland notes are exciting. I would do the same thing and would love to go rock flipping there someday.



I know the pit viper, Deinagkistrodon acutus, occurs on Taiwan. I don't think any other pit vipers are there, but maybe some regular vipers are there? I'm not too surprised cobras (Chinese?), Ptyas ratsnakes, and others are there, although it is surprising they can be found in Taipai itself. I would also expect a variety of natricine snakes and other small snakes, such as the Oriental green snakes. I'd like to start working on a list.



I agree that, if Taiwan was flat, as well as all of China, there wouldn't be any habitat left. Feel free to check out my Yahoo site and blog....



Happy New Year, everyone!



TC


ratsnakehaven's site


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Ratsnake Haven...researching ratsnakes since 1988



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