Arboreal and fossorial reptiles

This chapter discusses some sampling and trapping techniques for arboreal and fossorial reptiles, as these are often more elusive and their habitats and behaviours often provide obstacles to further study. Arboreal habitats in particular provide vertical challenges for researchers, with heights frequently exceeding thirty metres. In addition, forest vegetation might further impede observation or sampling. General methods for observing arboreal reptiles range from climbing trees and VES to outright tree-cutting. Trapping methods are more varied, from simply capturing the specimen by hand to using firearms. The difficulty of sampling fossorial reptiles, on the other hand, lies in their underground habitat, as well as the often opportunistic nature of the studies involving them. The usual search methods for these include merely flipping rocks over to opportunistic research via large excavation sites. Passive traps such as pitfall traps or drift fences can be used for below-ground trapping.