Herpetological trip to morocco

Map of Morocco with the main places visited

Another year, another trip. This 2022 it was time to make an epic herpetological trip with my friend and herping partner Max Benito again, after two years of covid pandemic. Due to the remaining covid restrictions, our plans far away from the Europe/Mediterranean region had to be posponed again, so finally we decided to come back to our last pre-pandemic destination: Morocco. Because of its proximity to the Iberian Peninsula and the spectacular herpetofauna, Morocco is perhaps the most popular herpetological destination among Spanish fieldherpers. Despite the success of our first trip there, there were still several of the most impressive species to be seen. Among them, our two main targets for this trip are our remaining two among the ones we consider to be the "big five" herp species of Morocco (see the previous trip report): the moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica) and the desert monitor (Varanus griseus). Along this two most wished species, there were also some cool lizards, geckoes, snakes and amphibians we had yet to see, as well as other species we were looking forward to seeing again.

For this second north african adventure, we recruit two great herpers and friends from Spain, one from Max's land and one from mine. From Salamanca, Saúl Gómez, a young and passionate promise of iberian herpetology. And from Valencia, Carlos Ortega, a friend of mine since we studied biology together, and also an herping partner in the valencian Timon Herpetological Association. In the last moment, we had the privilege to be join by a recognised fieldherper as the swiss Robin Gloor, who completed the five member team. We planned a 14 day trip, covering all the typical places we've been in our first trip, but with the addition to going into the high atlas for some mountain specialities, and spending more time in the south, inside the Sahara, to increase the chances to find the elusive king of desert reptiles, the desert monitor.  

As we were five, we rented two cars, one big van for the four spaniards and a smaller car for Robin. Going in two cars allowed us to double the effort both in checking pits and cisterns and in roadcruising, two of the main ways to find reptiles in Morocco. I must also say that for this trip I have improved my photographic equipment with the acquisition of a better quality macro lens (for herps) and a telephoto lens (for birds, mammals and herps in situ), so I hope you will notice the quality of my photos to be improved. 

Spoiler alert: The five explorers at nearly 50ºC after achieving the main target of the trip.

From left to right: Max, Luis, Robin, Saúl and Carlos

Carlos and I landed in Marrakech on the night of 15th July, and after the usual border tramits and get the rental van, we headed to join the others directly to our first destination: the locality of Oukaïmeden, in the hearth of the high Atlas mountains. Our targets here were mountain endemics and among them specially the atlas dwarf viper (Vipera monticola). As we arrive in late night, the viper must wait until the morning, so we walk a little along streams and found the first species: some berber toads (Sclerophrys mauritanica), north african common frogs (Pelophylax saharica) and viperine water snakes (Natrix maura). We failed to found our main amphibian target, the painted frog Discoglossus scovazzi, probably not very active in summer. We ended with a nice meal in our accomodation, a tasty moroccan tajine. 

Next morning we got up early with night sights of the Atlas, crowned by the shape of the imposing Djebel Toubkal (4.167m). With the first sunrays, we started to find endemic lizards, being the most common the Atlas day geckoes (Quedenfeltia trachyblepharus), a really nice small gecko. We also saw the Toubkal lizard (Atlantolacerta andreanskii), the mountain skink (Chalcides montanus) and Andalusian wall lizards (Podarcis vaucheri). In term of snakes, in spite of searching all morning, we only found a smooth snake (Coronella girondica) and no trace of vipers. In terms of birds, I was the only birder of the team so we did not put so much effort on them, but I saw some mountain endemics here. We headed to our next destination hoping to come back for another fight with the viper if we succed on the rest of our targets. 

After leaving the mountains, we headed south into the Souss Valley, to spend a couple days fully focused on non-stop pit searching to get our main snake target for the trip, the legendary moorish viper. The Agadir region is one of the best to find them, even on our first trip we found a dead one inside a pit and some other friends have found them here too. The first morning we only found common snakes as Hemorrhois and Psammophis, but we had a nice experience around a village, where the friendly locals show us the cisterns and even helped us with the rescues! Undoubtedly one of the best things about Morocco is the great hospitality of its people, who make travel here very comfortable. We also rescued other animals during the day, as toads, skinks and agamas. In the afternoon things started to get better, as our team arrived to a group of very promising cisterns (not for the animals...), where we found two big algerian skinks (Eumeces algeriensis) and a subadult egyptian cobra (Naja haje), my favourite local snake. Unfortunately, the cobra had fallen into a cistern filled with water and was in very poor physical condition, it barely standed up and we had to release it without taking too many photos, fearing that it would probably not make it through. A double-sided weapon these cisterns, they make it easier to find and save animals but from time to time you have to witness things like this...  On the other hand, the swiss-dutch team found the target species in other pit: a nice subadult moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica), which was on shed but still an impressive snake.

Algerian skink (Eumeces algeriensis)

Moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica)

After the success with the moorish viper in Agadir, we headed south towards the nice coastal town of Sidi Ifni, checking as many cisterns as possible on the way. I also made a brief stop on the coastal road to enjoy a couple young lanner falcons (Falco biarmicus erlangueri), one of my favourite moroccan birds. Our target here in Ifni was to find the mighty puff adder (Bitis arietans), a snake Max and I enjoyed a lot in our last trip, but which the rest of us had never seen. We began finding only common snakes and lizards in the pits, so we put all our efforts into night roadcruising for the puff adder and other nocturnal snakes as the tropical relics Boaedon and Dasypeltis. However, the two nights we roadcruised here (in two teams) we found almost no snake activity, only a couple geckoes on the road. And this despite the fact that we spent a good part of the nights roadcruising and traveled most of the roads between Ifni, Guelmin and Plague Blanche where the target species are usually seen. For our team, the best find was perhaps a close encounter with an african wildcat (Felys lybica), which allowed us to photograph it up close.

In the end, however, Max and Robin had perhaps the luckiest moment of the trip. The first night they got out of the car to check the species of a roadkill gecko, and came face to face with a huge moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica) that was climbing up a slope next to the road. This time a large, not in shed adult, undoubtedly the most spectacular snake of the trip, like a giant version of the european vipers. We took photographs of the snake the next morning and after releasing it on the same spot where found we headed south to our next destination. 

Moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica)

We came down from Sidi Ifni the the city of Guelmin, where we booked the same hotel as in my first trip. Tired of looking for puff adders on the coastal roads, we decided to spend the following day deep inside the desert areas of the Anti-atlas south of Guelmin, in the Assa region, where more saharian species can be found. The morining started well by rescuing a false cobra (Rhagheris moilensis) from a pit, a new species for all of us and one of the snakes we missed the other trip. The reptile activity on the desert, at more than 50ºC, was however very little, and even the normally common spiny tailed lizards were not seen, although we were able to rescue a few of them from pits. I could enjoy some desert birds too, but not so many were moving around.

On the night we headed to a spot where we found the very cool saw-scaled vipers (Echis pyramidum), on our last trip. This snake is meant to be one of the rarest species of the area, but here it seems to be quite common and easy to find. We began to search with a temperature of more than 40ºC and in spite of being at night the sensation was like herping inside an oven. Saúl was the first of succed and found a subadult Echis. A bit after, I found another viper species, the sahara horned viper (Cerastes cerastes), a nice pale adult inside a bush. On our way back to the car to take the cameras, Max almost stepped over a big adult saw-scaled viper, ending a great herping night. After this we moved a bit to another area to see some geckoes, specially the Petri's gecko (Stenodactylus petrii), which is quite rare in this region, but of which we found a good population. 

Saw-scaled viper (Echis pyramidum leucogaster)

Sahara horned viper (Cerastes cerastes)

We arrived at Guelmin with sunrise after a great night of herping in the desert, and after some sleep and eating pizzas, we drove towards our next destination in Tan-Tan. Here it is worth mentioning the unfortunate road that connects these two places and continues along the coast to Tarfaya, the infamous N-1, known to us as "the death road". On our previous trip it turned out to be a narrow road full of trucks, but fortunately, it is being widened to a nice highway. But it is still under construction, which makes it even more deadly, as you can only drive on one of the two sides at a time, making it look like you are on a highway and they can't come at you from the front; when in fact they can. After having to dodge a truck getting into the ground on the median and some surprises with piles of dirt in the middle of the road, we arrived safe and sound to Tan-Tan and after getting a hotel we started to check cisterns in the area.

On the half day we spent here checking cisterns we hoped to get some new colubrids (as Boaedon) or a nicer cobra, but we found in spite three specimens of what is thought to be the most beautiful snake of the Maghreb, the mograbin diadem snake (Spalerosophis dolichospilus). First, we found a very contrasted subadult. In a nearby cistern, Max saw a very big one with more than 1.5m, close to the maximum size recorded for this species. And we ended in another nearby cistern by rescuing a juvenile. We found them in the same area where we saw this species on the previous trip, again the experience of our first time here helped us to find certain species again. We ended the rescue day by finding another new species, an algerian whipsnake (Hemorrhois algirus intermedius). Not as cool as the one morphs they get down in the sahara, but nice already. I also photographed some birds between cistern and cistern. 

Mograbin diadem snake (Spalerosophis dolichospilus), a very big adult

After all the success with the moorish vipers, we did not want nothing more that find the big lizard of the desert, the desert monitor. One of the best places to find them is perhaps the Smara area, well inside the Sahara desert. So there we went, we stayed for two nights and spend the days both looking in cisterns and roadcruising for the Varanus, and the nights doing a mixture of foot and car searching for other herps. The climate here is very hard, with day temperatures around 50ºC and strong and unpredictable sandstorms every afternoon. We found no snakes or monitors inside cisterns on the first day, but Max and Robin could catch a nice adult sudanese dob (Uromastyx dispar flavifasciata) in the habitat. On the night, we enjoyed a lot of cool geckoes, as the big Tarentola annularis and a new species for us, Tarentola hoggarensis, a very interesting gecko that inhabits only inside big acacia trees. We also had nice views of both Stenodactylus species, with S. petrii being much more common here, and Robin ended the night finding an adult awl-headed snake (Lytorhynchus diadema). 

On the second day in Smara, we had a huge storm and rain that turned the desert into a marshland (but with no amphibians). Locals told us that we have seen the biggest rains in at least 7 years or so. An incredible spectacle to see the desert flooded with water. That night we saw no amphibians on the move and as usual no snakes on the road (a strange thing considering that Cerastes vipers should be abundant here). I did some on foot searches and ended finding a big diadem snake (Spalerosophis diadema). I would prefer maybe the inland morph of the sand viper Cerastes vipera, but a cool snake indeed. Finally, it seemed that the elusive desert monitor had not wanted to show, and we headed towards our next destination in Tarfaya when we received a call from the other car. The luck had hitted us again, as Robin saw a thick long tail going inside a rocky crevice when he went to release an Uromastyx. Finally, the king of the desert reptiles was in front of us, the mighty Varanus griseus. And I must say that in person it was even more incredible, an animal that we enjoyed enormously despite the intense heat. It was an adult, not the biggest they can get, but full of attitude, with a great pattern and incredible eyes.

Desert monitor (Varanus griseus)

After the moment of joy with the Varanus, we finally headed towards the coast, trough Layounne (a caotical city) and finally got to Tarfaya at night to pick a hotel. Meanwhile, the other team formed by Max, Saúl and Robin went to Khenifiss NP to take a walk on the sand dunes to look for the coastal morph of the sahara sand viper (Cerastes vipera), a most desired snake for Robin. Carlos and I also herp a bit near Tarfaya after booking the hotel, but none of the teams were succesful, so we get to sleep and try again on the next morning, this time the five of us on the National Park. We could find some Cerastes tracks, but again no luck with the small viper. I found however a Psammophis with the saharan pattern, different from the uniform ones we use to see further north. We also found some Tarentola chazaliae with the unicolor pattern typical of this areas, and lots of sand skink tracks, but as in our first trip it was impossible to find one. Maybe they are more easy in spring... 

When we were about to return defeated to have dinner in Tarfaya, I decided to stop for a moment to check a cistern that I had marked on the way. And miracle, there was the beautiful sand viper. An adult specimen with the typical dark pattern they have in this coastal area. I would have liked to see the inland morphotype, paler and orange, but still the species is always a delight to see, with that burrowing behavior perfectly adapted to its environment. This time Max and I could make better pictures of this viper, as in our first trip we found them on a humid night and they get covered in sticky sand. And finally, we also rescue another saharian morph Psammophis in a nearby pit to end the day.

Sahara sand viper (Cerastes vipera)

With some days on the trip left and the two main targets acomplished, we decided to spend the last day on the Atlas to give another try with the Vipera monticola, and the days before were spent in the Ifni-Guelmin-Tiznit area, focused on checking as many cisterns as possible to find an adult Naja, and roadcruising for Bitis. The 25th we suffered all the afternoon to get back to Tan-Tan truough the "death road" again, with lots of funny traps, as a burnt car in the middle of the road, more random ground mounts to avoid, and rocks on the side, to cite some. Finally Carlos managed to pass the "Dakar rally" and we arrived to Tan-Tan. The 26th we do pit rescues between here and Ifni, and that night we roadcruise agan. All this time we only found common species, and an adult Naja recently dead on one cistern... The last day of pits, however, in the Tiznit area we found a new snake species for the trip, Macroprotodon brevis, and a juvenile moorish viper, ending the number of three Daboia of different ages, nothing bad!

Also in this area we found lots of Hemorrhois, the most rescued snake of the trip, and Carlos had a dangerous but funny moment as he rescued one from a cistern filled with water. Our intrepid adventurer decided to go down with his water boots on, which immediately filled with water and dragged him to the bottom, preventing him from swimming until we threw him the ladder to grab on and take them off. On the way up after passing us the Hemorrhois he also had a slight incident with the cistern lid, which closed at the worst possible moment.... However for Saúl and me it was probably one of the best moments of the trip! And one more snake that crawls alive :)

And the last destination of the trip, a new try in Oukaïmeden to get the last moroccan viper for me, the Atlas dwarf viper. It was a long way up from the south, but we arrived on the night of the 27th to be ready to herp on the morning of the 28th. In spite having a little less reptile activity than on the begining of the trip, and our energy levels being way down, finally Robin persisted and finally found a nice male viper, maybe about the nicest this species can be. After photography and releasing the viper, we get the trip concluded, as Robin had to take the plane early on the 29th. The rest of us herp a bit that night and the next morning on the mountain foothills but with nothing interesting found. So, on the afternoon we took the plane back to Spain.

Atlas dwarf viper (Vipera monticola)

Again, a very successful trip to Morocco, a country where despite having many incredible species it is often said that it is difficult to find snakes. We finally found 75 specimens of ophidians (average of about 5 snakes per day), of 17 species, although approximately half of the specimens correspond to the very common Hemorrhois hippocrepis. In addition, Max and I were able to see the top species that we missed on the previous trip, Daboia and Varanus, and with 3 individuals of the first one. Nevertheless, we had to try our best because the reptile activity was much lower in July than on our previous trip in September. Despite driving with two cars for whole nights, covering hundreds of kilometers, we did not see a single snake on the road during the whole trip. The cisterns were again productive, doubling the effort as there were two teams and taking advantage of the knowledge about the areas we acquired on the first trip. Also the night searches on foot were hard but productive. This is certainly an incredible country to which I hope to be able to return many more times to enjoy its herpetofauna. This time, the adult cobra may be the next target....

Finally, I wish to thank all moroccan people for their hospitality, which makes you feel safe and confortable every time you are there. I don't want to finish without mentioning again all the friends and fellow herpers to whom I want to thank for their advice and help before and during the trip: Rubén Sánchez, Raúl León, Alberto Sánchez, GertJan Verspui, and specially Gabri Martínez. 

Herp species list:

Amphibians:

Pelophylax saharica

Hyla meridionalis

Bufo spinosus

Sclerophrys mauritanica

Barbarophryne brongesmai

Bufotes boulengueri

Turtles:

Mauremys leprosa

Testudo graecca

Lacertid lizards:

Atlantolacerta andreanskii

Podarcis vaucheri

Psammodromus algirus

Mesalina olivieri

Acanthodactylus margaritae

Acanthodactylus aureus

Skinks:

Chalcides montanus

Chalcides polylepis

Chalcides ocellatus DOP

Eumeces algeriensis x7

Geckos:

Quedenfeltia trachybleparus

Tarentola mauritanica

Tarentola bohemei 

Tarentola annularis

Tarentola hoggarensis

Tarentola chazaliae

Saurodactylus sp

Stenodactylus mauritanicus

Stenodactylus petrii

Ptyodactylus oudrii 

Tropicolotes algericus

Agamid lizards:

Agama bribonii

Trapelus bohemei

Uromastyx dispar x1

Uromastyx nigriventris x6

Varanid lizards:

Varanus griseus x1

Snakes:

Coronella girondica x1

Hemorrhois hippocrepis x37

Hemorrhois algirus x1

Spalerosophis dolichospilus x3

Spalerosophis diadema x1

Lytorhynchus diadema x1

Macroprotodon brevis x1

Natrix maura x5

Psammophis schokari x11

Malpolon monspessulanus monspessulanus x2

Malpolon monspessulanus saharatlanticus x2

Rhageris moilensis x1

Naja haje x1

Bitis arietans x1 DOR

Cerastes cerastes x1

Cerastes vipera x1

Echis pyramidum x2

Daboia mauritanica x3

Vipera monticola x1

eBird trip report with the bird species list: https://ebird.org/tripreport/69678