Eilat (29.56N, 34.95E) is the southernmost city in Israel, located in the southern tip of the country, in the driest of all its habitats. Eilat is a coastal city on the Red Sea, home to gorgeous coral reefs and surrounded by pristine desert mountains. Just north of Eilat, and along the Israeli-Jordanian border, is the Arava valley, part of the Jordan Rift Valley, home to low desert plains and sand dunes.
Our trip to Southern Israel can potentially bring us to encounter up to eight (!) species of geckos, including two species of Ptyodactylus, two species of Stenodactylus, Tropiocolotes cf. nattereri (sorry Marco, still waiting for you to put new names here), Hemidactylus turcicus, Bunopus blanfordii, and the invasive Cyrtopodion scabrum. In addition to these glorious geckos, we are also likely to encounter many other desert reptiles, including vipers such as Echis coloratus or Cerstes gasperettii, and the enormous Uromastyx agamids!
We plan to leave Tel Aviv on Monday, May 27th, in the afternoon. We will drive south to Eilat, and after some nocturnal herping, we will start heading back north while herping in the Arava Valley north of Eilat and sleep in dorms in the Hatzeva field school. We will wake up early next morning, with the sunrise or just slightly later, to drive back to Tel Aviv and freshen up for the last afternoon session of the conference.
Our trip to Southern Israel can potentially bring us to encounter up to eight (!) species of geckos, including two species of Ptyodactylus, two species of Stenodactylus, Tropiocolotes cf. nattereri (sorry Marco, still waiting for you to put new names here), Hemidactylus turcicus, Bunopus blanfordii, and the invasive Cyrtopodion scabrum. In addition to these glorious geckos, we are also likely to encounter many other desert reptiles, including vipers such as Echis coloratus or Cerstes gasperettii, and the enormous Uromastyx agamids!
We plan to leave Tel Aviv on Monday, May 27th, in the afternoon. We will drive south to Eilat, and after some nocturnal herping, we will start heading back north while herping in the Arava Valley north of Eilat and sleep in dorms in the Hatzeva field school. We will wake up early next morning, with the sunrise or just slightly later, to drive back to Tel Aviv and freshen up for the last afternoon session of the conference.