{"id":28425,"date":"2025-11-05T19:51:40","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T08:51:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcontinenttours.com\/?p=28425"},"modified":"2025-11-05T19:54:52","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T08:54:52","slug":"bach-ma-herping-tour-2-days-1-night-trip-report-october-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcontinenttours.com\/zh\/bach-ma-herping-tour-2-days-1-night-trip-report-october-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Bach Ma Herping Tour (2 Days \/ 1 Night) \u2014 Trip Report (October 2025)"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m Di\u1ec7p T\u00f9ng<\/a>, the principal herping guide at Next Continent. This is a trip report and summary of a tour I lead in B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3 National Park herping tour, joined by my guest Joost from Thailand.<\/p>\n

We first met on iNaturalist, where I identified one of Joost\u2019s snake observations as\u00a0Elaphe moellendorffi<\/em>. He later reached out on WhatsApp to thank me and ask about joining a B\u1ea1ch M\u00e3 herping trip with Next Continent<\/a> and soon enough, our tour was set.<\/p>\n

We met at the park entrance at 9 a.m. and drove halfway up the mountain to begin our search for tarantulas. This part of the Annamite Ranges has its own endemic species of undescribed scientifically known as Cyriopagopus sp. ‘Bach Ma’<\/strong>, or Haplopelma sp. ‘Bach Ma’. It is a fossorial species that can be very difficult to view in the wild.<\/p>\n

After around 45 minutes, our efforts were rewarded with a large, hairy specimen, our first main target of the day. On the way back, we spotted a Grey Wagtail<\/strong>, two Pallas\u2019s Squirrel<\/strong>, and as a bonus, a Stump-tailed Macaque<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

From there, we continued to the summit to explore the area and enjoy a pre-ordered lunches. Afterwards, we took a short rest at the accommodation so we could prepare for what would surely be a big night of epic herping.<\/p>\n

After a great dinner (the team here do amazing food!), and within just 30 minutes of heading out we encountered our first snake, a Vogel\u2019s Pit Viper<\/strong> (Trimeresurus vogeli<\/em>), easily recognised by its green-tipped tail. Soon after, we found a Taiwan Slug-eating Snake<\/strong> (Pareas cf. fosmosensis<\/em>) near one of the mountain streams, making the tally two snake species within the first hour!<\/p>\n

During the second hour, we added the following to our list:<\/p>\n