Copulatory behavior of Knuckles pygmy lizard (Cophotis dumbara)

Nearly one in every five species of reptiles in the world is threatened with extinction and thus is conservation dependent. In order to develop effective and targeted species conservation strategies, detailed information on their distribution, systematics and ecology are necessary. Information such as the natural history and in-situ reproductive behaviors would be crucial for highly threatened species that require ex-situ conservation measures. Agamid lizards are a major component of the global reptile diversity and a significant number are threatened due to habitat loss and other threats such as smuggling.

Chromatic leucism in the flap shell turtle, Lissemys punctata from Bangladesh

The spotted flap shell turtle, Lissemys punctata (Bonnaterre, 1789) has a distribution in Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan. In Bangladesh, this species is widely distributed throughout the freshwater wetlands and the low-lying floodplains, coastal islands, and hill districts. This species is listed in CITES (Appendix II) and protected by Bangladesh Wildlife Conservation & Security Act 2012 (Schedule II), where commercial trade is strictly prohibited. Lissemys punctata has an oval and domed carapace with olive-green colour spotted by dark yellow blotches. The head is also olive green often with yellow blotches, whereas the plastron is whitish or pale yellow. The colour of this species may vary depending on its habitat and defence strategy. Colour aberration in animals may occur due to a lack of melanin. Golden yellow colour aberration (chromatic leucism) is rare in animals, especially in turtles. This might be because of the absence of melanin in the outer dermis. The presence of high xanthophores and yellow pteridine pigments in the skin are also responsible for the golden yellow colour aberration.

On the occurance of crowned river turtle, Hardella thurjii in Gujarat, India

The crowned river turtle, Hardella thurjii (Gray, 1831) is widely distributed from Pakistan to Bangladesh, and possibly in western Myanmar. It prefers the middle and lower reaches of the northern river systems on the Indian subcontinent, comprising the Indus, Ganga, Brahmaputra, and their tributaries. The species is classified as Endangered, but nationally remains a poorly protected species under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act. This communication presents the first photographic evidence of the crowned river turtle, from Gujarat State, India. It was previously reported from North Gujarat two decades ago, but without any evidence.

EDITORIAL : A research priority for biodiversity conservation

Conservation biology emerged as a scientific discipline in the mid-1980s with the explicit practical goal of conserving species and habitats. The term ‘biodiversity’ was coined soon after, apparently at some time during the organization of the September 1986 National Forum on Biodiversity held by the US National Academy of Sciences and the Smithsonian Institution. The science of conservation biology was quickly taken up. Journals proliferated and textbooks soon followed. Laboratories within university biology and ecology departments specialized in conservation biology. Along with a great many other young biologists and ecologists, I climbed the moral high ground and set about research to help change the future by discovering how to protect biodiversity.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PUPAL COLOUR AND SEX RATIO OF THE COMMON MORMON, Papilio polytes romulus CRAMER, 1775 (INSECTA: LEPIDOPTERA), SRI LANKA

A free ranging female common Mormon (Papilio polytes romulus) butterfly was observed laying eggs on a Citrus aurantiifolia (Family: Rutaceae) plant in a home garden in Battaramulla. 16 eggs were collected and reared in the lab. The duration and measurements of each stage were recorded. After eclosion the sex and wingspan of all adult butterflies were recorded and they were released back to the wild. Pupae were observed in two colours: green and brown. Out of 16 pupae, 12 were green (75%) and four were brown (25%). The four brown pupae gave rise to two males (50%) and two females (50%). The 12 green pupae gave rise to 10 males (83%) and two females (17%). The sex ratios regardless of the pupal colour showed male dominance with 12 males (75%) and four females (25%). All four females were of the romulus form. A strong relationship between pupal colour and substrate texture was observed, but no relationship between pupal colour, sex and sex ratios was seen.

Gliding behaviour of Indian giant flying squirrel (Petaurista philippensis)

The Indian giant flying squirrel or large brown flying squirrel, Petaurista philippensis (Elliot, 1839) is one of 13 gliding squirrel species found in India. Nocturnal by nature, they have ability to glide up to 150 m. We studied its gliding habit in the human-modified landscape of the Kevdi ecotourism site (22.5198ºN, 73.9356ºE; Fig. 1), Panchmahal District, between two protected areas in Gujarat: Ratanmahal Sloth Bear Sanctuary and Jambughoda Wildlife Sanctuary. The Kevdi ecotourism site is a known locality of this species. Here, we present basic information on the gliding ecology of the species in the dry deciduous forests of central Gujarat.

ERRATUM :Amarasinghe, A.A.T., S. Karunarathna, M. Madawala, and A. de Silva (2021)

ERRATUM :Amarasinghe, A.A.T., S. Karunarathna, M. Madawala, and A. de Silva (2021). Two new rupicolous day geckos of the Cnemaspis alwisi group (Reptilia: Gekkonidae) from Sri Lanka. Taprobanica, 10 (1): 23–38 + pls. 3–8.

Ophiophagy by banded krait (Bungarus fasciatus) exposed by a road kill

Bungarus fasciatus (Schneider, 1801) is a nocturnal, large bodied krait species, widely distributed throughout South and Southeast Asia. It is found at a variety of habitats with relatively large home ranges. The ophiophagous diet of this venomous snake comprises a broad spectrum of prey items, even including its congener B. caeruleus. It also preys on skinks, fish, frogs, and eggs of snakes. On 16 June 2021, at 2105 h, a fresh road-kill of an adult male B. fasciatus (total length 1.46 m) was observed on a newly constructed tarmac road (width of road ~6 m) at New Khawlek (23°19'16.00"N, 92°38'36.95"E; alt. 715 m a.s.l.), Lunglei District, Mizoram, India. It seems the krait remained vulnerably exposed on the motorway while consuming a redtail pit-viper, Trimeresurus erythrurus (Cantor, 1839) (total length 48.8 cm), and was fatally run over while busy swallowing more than half of the length of its prey, most probably a few minutes prior to our arrival at the site.

LETTER TO EDITOR: A response to Narayanan et al. (2021) “On the validity of the recently described bush frog Raorchestes kollimalai Gowande, Ganesh & Mirza, 2020” published in Zootaxa

Narayanan et al. (2021) make extremely grave allegations of ‘misrepresentation of data’ by Gowande et al. (2020). Narayanan et al. (2021) found serious flaws in the publication dealing with the description of Raorchestes kollimalai by Gowande, Ganesh & Mirza (2020). The authors state that Gowande et al. (2020) overlooked many errors, which consequently raises questions on the validity of R. kollimalai. We here respond to their comments, dispel their false allegations of misrepresentation of data and provide evidence for the validity of Raorchestes kollimalai. A common practice while writing a response/critique of a published paper is to contact the editor of the journal in which the paper was published, which, in this case, is TAPROBANICA. However, Narayanan et al. (2021) chose to publish their critique in a different journal, ZOOTAXA and thus, were unaware of the erratum to the paper on the new species. The erratum that was published in a recent issue of Taprobanica (Gowande et al. 2021) resolves some of the concerns raised by Narayanan et al. (2021). These concerns were a mistake on the part of Gowande et al. (2020) but by no means did the authors intend to hide or misrepresent data as accused by Narayanan et al. (2021).

TAXONOMIC COMPOSITION OF THE Rhabdophis subminiatus (SCHLEGEL, 1837) SPECIES COMPLEX (REPTILIA: NATRICIDAE) WITH THE DESCRIPTION OF A NEW SPECIES FROM CHINA

The systematics of Rhabdophis subminiatus (Schlegel, 1837) at subspecies level has long proved to be controversial. We analyse the variation of selected morphological characters in 179 specimens from populations covering the whole range of R. subminiatus sensu lato. Based on this review, we recognize four morphological groups, of which two do not agree with the current definitions and distributions of the currently recognized subspecies R. s. subminiatus. The “northernmost group” agrees with the definition of Natrix helleri Schmidt, 1925. In contrast, the “southernmost group” agrees with the syntypes of Tropidonotus subminiatus and we here restrict this species to the Sunda Region. We also discuss a previous designation of the lectotype of T. subminiatus, which we consider invalid, and we here make it valid in the sense of the Code. Furthermore, our analysis allows us to define a third group that is widespread in the Indochinese Region and Malayan Peninsula. For this geographically “central group”, the name Natrix subminiata siamensis Mell, 1931, is available. We therefore resurrect this taxon from its synonymy with R. subminiatus and we designate a lectotype in agreement with requirements of the Code. Lastly, we recognize a fourth group at species level, endemic to Hainan Island, China, that we describe as a new species. This division into four morphological groups at species level is coherent with phylogenetic analyses recently published in the literature. We also discuss and modify the taxonomic status of Natrix subminiata hongkongensis Mell, 1931 and Natrix (Rhabdophis) laobaoensis Bourret, 1934, now regarded as synonyms of R. subminiatus and R. siamensis, respectively.