Lizards and Other Creatures
(vero;2018-Oct-21)
It's easy to run into exotic animals when you're travelling around exotic places. Unfortunately, it's much harder to actually captivate them inside the camera: either the animal is already gone when the shutter opens or it moves too fast, producing a blurry something, or there's simply not enough light. Here are a few snaps from various places in Sri Lanka, all taken live and on the spot, without much preparation.
The animal which we by far saw the most in Sri Lanka is the Monitor Lizard. We filmed this splendid specimen rummaging for food in Mihintale:
Sri Lanka is the country of Elephants par excellence and they are one of the main attractions of many national parks. This one was very tame and working in the tourism trade, but we also saw some wild ones crossing the road in front of our bus on the way to Polonnaruwa. In the past, elephants used to be exported as working elephants to India on a regular basis. They were herded North, passed the causeway linking the Jaffna Peninsula to the rest of the island, now aptly named Elephant Pass, and ended their long trek in Kayts on the island of Velanai, from where they were shipped to India.
We saw our first Sri Lankan Monitor Lizard on our very first day in Negombo. We were strolling along Dutch channel and spotted a big shadow moving below the murky water surface. What was that? We followed for a while until the form moved to the channel bank opposite and revealed itself: it was just a Monitor Lizard!
A small colourful Crimson Fronted Barbet in the yard of our guest house in Polonnaruwa.
Sri Lanka being an island it is no wonder that fish plays an important role in the nation's diet. Negombo is the best place to witness fishermen at work and their catch.
The Giant Egret is a bird feeding on fish, living and nesting near water and one can see plenty of them in Sri Lanka. The left picture has been taken on Dutch Channel in Negombo while the Egret on the right picture was nesting on the shores of Kandy lake.
We spotted those Flying Snakes in the southern group of ruins in Polonnaruwa.
We are usually very careful with dogs while travelling but we must say that dogs in Sri Lanka are very well behaved, friendly and seemingly happy. They are all of the same uncertain breed, mostly in light brown colour with quite high legs.
This Gray Langur was sitting on a tree in a park along the lake of Polonnaruwa. He was watching Sri Lankan tourists sitting below the tree eating their picnic.
No, this Monitor Lizard in Mihintale is not drinking from a straw, it is just sticking its tongue out for insects. We saw lots of Monitor Lizards during our stay in Sri Lanka. Click on the arrow to see our friend rummaging for food: 
We saw this Giant Squirrel in Mihintale, it seemed to be quite tame and well-known from the men manning the site.
There is one omnipresent and very annoying creature in Sri Lanka which we have not photographed but which has to be featured on this page: the Mosquito. Be aware that there has been a Dengue epidemic in Sri Lanka in 2017, make sure to protect yourself against mosquito bites.
Want to read more? Go back to Jaffna Town and Islands or go on to Bye Sri Lanka, Hello India or go up to Blog
$updated from: Blog.htxt Mon 04 Mar 2024 16:04:40 trvl2 (By Vero and Thomas Lauer)$