Ian Lockwood

Looking south in the high peaks of the Knuckles (Dumbara) range from the newly flooded Kaluganga reservoir.

This year OSC’s Highlands WWW experience took a different, more northern route to Sri Lanka’s loftiest peaks, offering fresh opportunities to explore themes of ecology, landscape and culture in the mountainous interior of the island. The group included 13 MYP5 and DP1 students from a variety of countries. Desline Attanayake supported me in guiding them as we headed north to Yapahuwa, overnighted in Pidurangala and then headed into the Knuckles for three days. Our final night was at Nuwara Eliya where we enjoyed a final night of frogging.

Amphibians were once again a key point of interest on our daily walks. The lingering North East Monsson brought heavy rains to the Knuckles and provided ideal opportunities to look for frogs and their predators. Our main target species was the point endemic Kirtisinghe’s rock frog or marbled streamlined frog (Nannophrys marmorata). It is restricted to wet rock surfaces at the Pitawala Pantana on the road to Riverston. Our team was assisted by the able and knowledgeable Knuckles-based guide KC. He helped us locate several individuals in an area that Lenny and I had searched in vain for back in June. We were less successful with our planned hike to Manigala where heavy rain and unmarked paths forced us to cut short the walk. Staying at Sir Johns Bungalow was a new part of the experience and it proved to be an ideal base for our Knuckles explorations. Our final 24 hours in Nuwara Eliya were productive with rich frog and bird sightings. We were also happy to enjoy the hill station’s crisp, clear winter weather sans precipitation. As usual, we ended the trip with a visit to Pidurutalagala- something that took an extra effort through Desline and MYP5 student Lithira.

OSC Highlands group at Yapahuwa steps. This was the first day of our five day foray into Sri Lanka’s highlands. Yapahuwa is not in the highlands, but it was on our way and offered a worthy first peak to climb and explore.

Approaching the eastern face of the Yapahuwa rock fortress, a splendid archeological site on the road up to Anuradhapura. Yapahuwa was briefly a capital of the ancient kings and hosted the tooth relic in the 13th Century.

The hunt for….

OSC students and staff exploring the Pitiwala Pantana on the look out for the enigmatic Marbled Stream Frog (Nannophrys marmorata).

Sir John’s Bungalow in monsoon conditions. While the rest of the island was experiencing dry winter weather, the Knuckles was still in the throes of the North East monsoon during our visit in late January. Not great for birds and landscapes but ideal conditions for amphibians and snakes!

OSC hikers in the shadow of Riverston. Taken on the Pitiwala Pantana.

The Telgamu Oya area with flood conditions that were the result of a delayed vigorous North East monsoon. The weather affected our hiking (and swimming) plans.

Flooded trail in the Manigala area.

Montane Hour Glass Fog (Taruga eques) at St. Andrews. Compare this individual with earlier examples of the same species that I have photographed.

MYP5 student Lithira gets up close and personal with a Ceylon Cat Snake (Boiga ceylonensis) that was found on the road near the Pitiwala Pantana by our capable guide KC.

Kirtisinghe’s rock frog or marbled streamlined frog (Nannophrys marmorata) at the Pitiwala Pantana. This is a Sri Lankan point endemic species located in a very, very narrow geographic area.

Lowland Kangaroo Lizard (Otocryptis nigristigma) at Back of Beyond’s Pidurangala property.

Knuckles or Dumbara Bent Toe Gecko (Cyrtodactylus soba) located by our guide KC.

Knuckles or Dumbara Pygmy Lizard (Cophotis Dumbara) at Riverston.

DP1 student Alex photographs an endemic Knuckles or Dumbara Bent Toe Gecko (Cyrtodactylus soba) with the guidance of KC.

Rainy day activities: photographing photographs an endemic Knuckles or Dumbara Bent Toe Gecko (Cyrtodactylus soba) at Sir John’s. It had been caught in the dining room and was released soon after outside.

Pidurutalagala Cloud Forest bokeh experiment (a mosaic of three images).

Euphorbia antiquorum on the slopes of Yapahuwa. A bokeh experiment (a mosaic of six images).

First night on the adventures….OSC Highlands group climbs Pidurtalagala for sunset.

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PAST WWW TRIPS

• WWW 2013 Sinharaja
• WWW 2014 Dry Zone
• WWW 2015 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2016 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2017 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2018 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2019 Sri Lanka Highlands

FURTHER READING & REFERENCES

Bambaradeniya Channa and S P Ekanayake. A Guide to the Biodiversity of the Knuckles Forest Range. Colombo: IUCN. 2003. Print.

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). Western Ghats and Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot. May 2007. Web.

De Silva, Anslem and Kanisha Ukuwela. A Naturalist’s Guide to the Reptiles of Sri Lanka. Colombo: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2017. Print.

Rodrigo, Malaka. “Lanka’s central highlands win heritage battle”. The Sunday Times. 8 August 2010. Web.

Senevirathna, Ishanda. The Peeping Frogs of Nuwara Eliya. Colombo: Jetwings, 2018. Print.

Singhalage Darshani, Nadeera Weerasinghe and Gehan de Silva Wijeratne. A Naturalist’s Guide to the Flowers of Sri Lanka. Colombo: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2018. Print.

Somaweera, Ruchira & Nilusha. Lizards of Sri Lanka: A Colour Guide With Field Keys. Frankfurt: Edition Chimaira 2009. Print.

Werner, Wolfgang. Sri Lanka’s Magnificent Cloud Forests. Colombo: Wildlife Heritage Trust, 2001. Print.