Ever since the great Charles Darwin published his observations on natural selection from the Galapagos islands, it has become a well-known fact that the evolution of island populations works in peculiar ways. As a result, island ecosystems have fascinated naturalists and biologists for centuries, and have been the focus of extensive research on ecology and evolution. The way these unique ecosystems work, how the organisms surviving on them colonized them, and just how they have adapted to extreme environmental challenges present there, is a major part of current herpetological research in Greece.
It was in early June 2023 when Ilias Strachinis called me and notified me that he would be visiting the Sporades for a monitoring program. Although my schedule during that particular time period was somewhat busy, there was no way in hell that I would miss on the opportunity to join him. I had already devoted a ton of time on the herpetofauna of the Sporades by then, but there were certain islands that I had never visited for fieldwork.
We spent a few days on Alonissos, where we made interesting records - my highlights, however, were the uninhabited islets. We first visited Gioura, where we discovered a new population of Four-lined snakes (Elaphe quatuorlineata). No snakes had previously been recorded there, so it is safe to say that finding this species on that huge, isolated rock in the middle of the Aegean, was more or less a pleasant surprise! Ilias also visited Piperi, but unfortunately, I was unable to join him. We then visited Psathoura, Grammeza and Lechousa. We found Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii) and Kotschy's gecko (Mediodactylus kotschyi) on all three islets, and we also managed to discover another population of Four-lined snakes (Elaphe quatuorlineata) on Grammeza islet, hinted to us by descriptions of local fishermen (on Alonissos, locals call this species Tiflítis [Τυφλίτης]). A very productive couple of expeditions! Special thanks to Sea Shepherd Greece and the local management body for providing their vessels.
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| Sunrise over Peristera, aboard the MV Emanuel Bronner |
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| Four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata), subadult from Gioura |
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| Four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata), adult male from Gioura |
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| Four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata), adult male from Gioura |
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Typical habitat on this unhospitable island
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| View from the cliffs of Gioura towards Psathoura, bonus a Black-eared whetear (Oenanthe melanoleuca) on the bottom right corner |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Gioura |
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| Kotschy's gecko (Mediodactylus kotschyi) from Gioura |
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| On the way to Psathoura, behind us is Gioura (left) and Kyra Panagia (right) |
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| Psathoura - one of the tallest lighthouses of the Aegean was built on this volcanic islet |
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| Erhard's wall lizard in its habitat on Grammeza islet, overlooking Koumbi and the NE coast of Kyra Panagia |
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| Erhard's wall lizards (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Grammeza |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Grammeza |
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| On the top of Lechousa islet, in the background Peristera (left) and Kyra Panagia (right) |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Lechousa |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Lechousa |
After Ilias left, I was still full of will to do more islet hopping, so I set up another survey expedition to the Skantzoura archipelago. This time, my father was going to take me there with his fishing boat. The Skantzoura cluster is a very unique place - imagine turquoise waters with small islets scattered all over the place, rocks formed predominately of marble, and thick woodland consisting of junipers (Juniperus turbinata). This archipelago is also a very important nesting area for several seabird species. In 2021, our survey team discovered a population of Caspian whip snake (Dolichophis caspius) on the main island of Skantzoura. I suspected that the species is likely present on some of the satellite islets too, as I had heard from various fishermen, so my goal for this expedition was pretty clear.
During my 3-day stay in the archipelago, I managed to find a new population of Caspian whip snake (Dolichophis caspius) on the small islet of Praso, off the west coast of Skantzoura, as well as two new populations of Kotschy's gecko (Mediodactylus kotschyi) on some different rocky outcrops. After this expedition, I can safely say that the Skantzoura archipelago might be my favorite place on earth. Can't wait to go back.
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| At the monastery of Skantzoura |
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Relics from a more lively past of the island
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| Caspian whip snake (Dolichophis caspius) from Skantzoura |
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| Audouin's gulls (Ichthyaetus audouinii) |
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| Audouin's gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii) on the marble rocks of the Skantzoura coastline |
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| European shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) |
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| Kotschy's gecko (Mediodactylus kotschyi) on Korakas islet |
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| Lunch in the Skantzoura archipelago. Doesn't get any fresher than this. |
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| Habitat of Dolichophis caspius on Praso islet |
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| Typical vegetation in the few open patches of habitat on Skantzoura |
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| Erhard's wall lizard with an orthopteran snack |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Skantzoura |
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| Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Skantzoura |
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Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni) from Skantzoura
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The new findings of these expeditions were published in an updated checklist of the Sporades' herpetofauna in 2024. A few more Erhard's wall lizard images from these islets can be seen in the Podarcis erhardii species gallery.
Species seen
Four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata)
Caspian whip snake (Dolichophis caspius)
Kotschy's gecko (Mediodactylus kotschyi)
Erhard's wall lizard (Podarcis erhardii ruthveni)
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