Irian Jaya Native Habitat
Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2012 4:33 pm
As everyone knows, Irian Jaya comprises the western portion of the island of New Guinea, one of the largest islands in the world. The island is known to hold a wealth of flora and fauna and to contain some of the largest remaining expanses of old-growth rainforest. The question I have is "what is the natural habitat for the blue tongue skinks who live there?"
Elevations range from sea level to over 4000 meters, and at that close to the equator, elevation and the rain shadows of the mountain ranges have a huge impact on the climate. As research, I have watched documentaries set in remote areas of New Guinea like Mysterious Mamberamo, Pururambo, and Carstensz: The Seventh Summit; the impression that I get is that it's hot and wet there year round. This strikes me as inconsistent considering that a skink can suffer respiratory infections at elevated humidity and goes into brumation at lower temperatures. It doesn't look like it ever really gets cold in that part of the world---unless you go up the mountains.
Does someone have a better idea of what sort of biome the skinks inhabit? Or someone who has visited New Guinea in person? I lived in Costa Rica for several years and I have seen situations where on the west coast it might go 3-4 months without rain; 30 km away in the mountains it might rain every day.Base don that experience of such varied climate in a very small area, I'm thinking that the Irian Jayas live in a dry tropical forest or something similar. Any information that you could share to satisfy my curiosity would be greatly appreciated.
Elevations range from sea level to over 4000 meters, and at that close to the equator, elevation and the rain shadows of the mountain ranges have a huge impact on the climate. As research, I have watched documentaries set in remote areas of New Guinea like Mysterious Mamberamo, Pururambo, and Carstensz: The Seventh Summit; the impression that I get is that it's hot and wet there year round. This strikes me as inconsistent considering that a skink can suffer respiratory infections at elevated humidity and goes into brumation at lower temperatures. It doesn't look like it ever really gets cold in that part of the world---unless you go up the mountains.
Does someone have a better idea of what sort of biome the skinks inhabit? Or someone who has visited New Guinea in person? I lived in Costa Rica for several years and I have seen situations where on the west coast it might go 3-4 months without rain; 30 km away in the mountains it might rain every day.Base don that experience of such varied climate in a very small area, I'm thinking that the Irian Jayas live in a dry tropical forest or something similar. Any information that you could share to satisfy my curiosity would be greatly appreciated.