Reptiles and amphibians in the Indian Subcontinent

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A number of pictures, depicting unidentified species, are also shown here. If you are able to identify any of these animals, or if you find any errors, I would be grateful to receive an email. You may use the address at the bottom of this page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek kalos (‘beautiful’), referring to the beautiful colours of many of the species.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The specific name is derived from the Latin niger (‘black’) and labrum (‘lip’).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is distributed from eastern Iran and Afghanistan eastwards across the entire Indian Subcontinent to southern China, and thence southwards through Indochina to Sumatra. It has also been introduced to other places, including Oman, Mauritius, the Seychelles, Singapore, and the United States. In Singapore, it is a threat to the native green crested lizard (Bronchocela cristatella).

In China, it is declining due to persecution, presumably collected for food or traditional medicine.

The specific name is derived from the Latin verso (‘to turn’) and color (‘colour’), thus ‘the one that changes its colour’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another name of these lizards is flying lizards, which is not a very descriptive name, as they are not able to truly fly, but glide from one tree to another by spreading out their ribs, which are connected by a wing-like membrane, called patagia.

The generic name is a Latinized version of Ancient Greek drakon (‘dragon’).

 

The specific name honours French merchant and traveller Jean-Jacques Dussumier (1792-1883), who collected numerous animals in southern Asia and other regions around the Indian Ocean, from 1816 to 1840.

 

 

 

 

 

Members of the genus Japalura are notoriously difficult to identify, and the two species mentioned below have only been tentatively identified.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek ot-, the stem of ous (‘ear’) and kryptos (‘hidden’), thus ‘with hidden ears’. The common name alludes to the very long legs of these lizards.

 

The specific name honours German herpetologist Arend Friedrich August Wiegmann (1802-1841), who described numerous species of reptiles, 55 of which are still considered valid, and he also described several new species of amphibians.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The specific name was applied in honour of British naturalist William Theobald (1829-1908), a staff member of the Geological Survey of India in Myanmar, which was then a part of British India. He described about a dozen new species of reptiles, and was the first person to publish a catalogue of the reptiles, which had been collected in British India. His work on Indian freshwater snails was one of the first of its kind, and he made his shell collections available to American missionary and naturalist Francis Mason (1799-1874) for his epic work Burmah, its People and Natural Productions, of which the third edition was completely rewritten by Theobald.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Greek mythology, Eryx was a legendary king in northern Sicily, in the province today known as Erice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The eyes of these animals move independently, and they are able to analyze two different images simultaneously when hunting for prey. When a suitable prey has been spotted, the chameleon projects its very long, sticky, folded-up tongue at a tremendous speed at the prey, often from quite a distance. The poor victim sticks to the tongue, which is then folded up and retracted into the mouth, prey and all.

Chameleons are also able to change colour very fast, which mostly happens when they get excited. An example is shown on the page Reptiles and amphibians: Reptiles in Africa, under Chamaeleo dilepis.

The family name is derived from the Greek khamai (‘on the ground’) and leon (‘lion’), thus ‘earth-lion’, undoubtedly alluding to the hunting method and voracious appetite of these animals.

Several species are popular pets, and some places they have escaped (or have been released) to form feral populations, which are often a threat to the local insect fauna – and thereby indirectly to insectvorous birds, and plants which are dependent on insects for pollunation. This is seen in Hawaii and other places.

 

 

The specific name refers to Sri Lanka, called Ceylon in the British colonial time. The type specimen was collected here.

 

 

 

 

 

The seventh species is the huge leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), which forms a separate family, Dermochelyidae. It has no scutes, but a leathery skin that covers 5 or 7 longitudinal ribs along the back.

Although sea turtles spend about 98% of their life in the oceans, the females must get ashore, when they are about to lay eggs. With a great effort, they crawl ashore on a sandy beach, where they use their hind flippers to dig a hole above the high tide line.

When a female has finished digging, she lays a number of white eggs, often between 80 and 100. They resemble table tennis balls, but are soft, so as not to break when they fall into the hole. When the egg-laying is over, the female covers the eggs, throwing sand about with her flippers to camouflage the spot. Then she returns to the sea.

Some sea turtle species lay eggs several times in a season, in some cases up to 11 clutches. It sounds incredible, but the female often returns to the beach where it hatched many years before. How she is able to do that remains a mystery. One theory is that the animals are imprinted by the physical and chemical composition of the beach, and that they are able to use the Earth magnetism to navigate from.

Earlier, adult sea turtles didn’t have many enemies. Tidligere havde voksne havskildpadder ikke mange fjender. Large sharks and orcas (Orcinus orca) may take some, although it is a rather bony mouthful. However, with the spreading of humans to the entire planet, the situation is quite different, and all eight species are declining drastically. The eggs are dug up and eaten by poor settlers, or eaten as a delicacy in restaurants, or because they are regarded as an aphrodisiac. Many adult turtles are also eaten by people.

The hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) is persecuted due to its beatiful carapace, from which jewelery, combs, and other items are carved. Numerous carapaces are imported by the Japanese. Even entire, varnished carapaces are sold as souvenirs, among other places in Indonesia.

Tens of thousands of sea turtles drown in fishing nets or become damaged by the propellors of boat engines. Young turtles die from eating waste oil and lumps of tar, floating on the surface. Many leatherbacks eat plastic, which resembles their main food, jellyfish. The plastic cannot be digested and gets stuck in the intestines, causing the animal to die from starvation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek lepidos (‘scale’) and chelys (‘turtle’), perhaps alluding to the scaly appearance of the head and flippers of these animals. The common name is of unknown origin.

 

The specific name alludes to the olive tinge on this otherwise brownish or greyish animal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In this area, Pandav was studying the life and ways of the olive ridley. In November-December, thousands gather off this coast to mate. He tried to estmate the number of egg-laying females, the number of which varies significantly from year to year. In 1994, it was estimated that about 525,000 females came ashore at Gahirmata. In 1999, the number was more than 200,000. Today, only Costa Rica has similar numbers.

Pandav and his staff also counted turtles, which had drowned in fishing nets, had been thrown overboard, and then drifted ashore. When a specimen was found, the month of observation was painted on the shield to avoid counting it again. In the period December 1993 to April 1994, 5,282 animals, which had drifted ashore, were counted along the coast of Odisha. In later years, the numbers have been even higher.

Finally, Pandav and his staff tagged as many turtles as possible to follow their wandrings. A steel ear-mark, used for pigs, was attached to one of the front flippers, using a plier. Each tag had a number and the address of the Wildlife Institute. During the 1990s, Pandav and staff tagged almost 15,000 turtles. Recoveries indicate that a large part of the population reside in Sri Lankan waters outside the breeding season.

While it is easy enough to tag the females, when they come ashore to lay eggs, it is far more difficult to catch the males. In reality, it can only be done when the animals mate, as they are then oblivious of the presence of people.

I met Pandav in India in October 1997, and when he realized that I was very interested in his work, he kindly invited me to join him and his staff on Wheeler Island, and a few weks later I went there.

From the island, we went to sea in a small motorized vessel named Maa Panchu Barahi (named after a local Hindu goddess). Choppy waves made the boat very unsteady, making it difficult to spot the turtles. However, the staff had eyes like hawks and spotted a pair at the surface at regular intervals.

When a pair was spotted, the helmsman turned the engine on full speed, steering towards the pair, while the other staff members made the gear ready, which was simply a net, made from nylon strings and attached to a triangular frame of robust bamboo stems. From two of these stems, ropes were tied to small projections on the rails of the boat.

To me, it seemed that the boat would run over the pair, but at the last instant the helmsman turned it to the right, and the assistant with the net steered it under the pair, which got entangled in the ropes.

”Pull!”, he shouted, and the other two staff members pulled hard at the ropes to attach the net to the rail. If this was not done quickly, the turtles might jump out of the net. But everything went well, and one of the turtles was lifted into the boat.

Besides tagging the turtles, length and width of the shield were measured, and the turtle was lifted into a net, which was then hung on a hook, attached to a scale. The scale was hanging from a pole, which two of the men lifted onto their shoulders. As it turned out, an olive ridley weighs between 35 and 50 kilos.

Later in the day, while the men were busy with a turtle in the net, I asked Pandav:”Did you ever catch one of your tagged turtles from the previous years?”

”Not yet”, he said.

At the same instant, one of the men shouted: ”This one is tagged!”

Pandav ran to have a look at the tag, and then performed a veritable war dance on the deck.

”This one was tagged last year!” he said happily.

In the course of the day, we caught 24 pairs – a personal record for Pandav. ”You bring me luck!” he said.

Late in the day, we returned to Wheeler Island, exhausted but elated. It had been a fine day for all of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Members of the family are non-toxic, with a few exceptions, including the genus Rhabdophis (below).

 

In later years, many species have been split into several separate species, and many of these have a very restricted range. The greatest diversity is found in southern India.

The type specimen was described from Sri Lanka, and the generic name was adapted from the Sinhalese name of these snakes, Aheatulla, which means ‘eye-plucker’ – whatever that may refer to.

 

The specific name is derived from the Latin nasus (‘nose’) and utus, a suffix forming adjectives, thus ‘with a (long) nose’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The common name refers to the fact that these snakes are able to glide from one tree to another by spreading out their ribs, giving the impression of flying.

The first part of the generic name is derived from Ancient Greek khrysos (‘gold’), alluding to the splendid colours of the type species, the golden tree snake (below). What the last part refers to is not known.

 

Due to its gorgeous colours, it is a very popular pet.

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek dendron (‘tree’) and elaphe, the classical Greek word for non-venomous snakes, in particular the Aesculapian snake (Zamenis longissimus), named after Asclepius, the god of medicine in Greek mythology. This snake was considered a symbol of healing.

 

The specific name is Latin, meaning ‘sad’. Why this name was applied to a colourful snake is quite a mystery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Himalaya, it may be found up to an elevation of about 2,000 m.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This species is distributed from central Nepal and Bangladesh eastwards across northern Indochina to southern China. In the Himalaya, it is mostly encountered at lower elevations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is quite variable, brown or blackish above, with or without darker spots, and with a yellow, more or less distinct band on each side, from the mouth to the end of the tail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from krokodeilos, the Ancient Greek term for these animals.

 

The largest known specimen measured 5.63 m, but on average males reach a length of 3-3.5 m, females 2-2.5 m, males weighing up to 200 kg. Its numbers have decreased alarmingly during the last 50 years due to habitat destruction (dam building and conversion of wetlands to farmland). They occasionally get entangled in fishing nets and drown, and some are killed by fishermen who regard them as competitors. In 2013, it was estimated that less than 8,700 individuals were living in the wild.

The word mugger is in fact pronounced ‘magar’, the Hindi name of this animal, derived from the Sanskrit makara, referring to a mythical crocodile-like creature.

The specific name is derived from the Latin palus (‘marsh’ or ‘swamp’).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is the largest living reptile, males sometimes growing more than 6 m long and weighing up to 1,300 kg. Females are much smaller, rarely exceeding 3 m in length. The largest specimens occasionally turn into dangerous man-eaters.

The specific name is derived from the Latin porus (‘an opening’), thus ‘having pores’. What it refers to is not clear.

 

 

 

 

 

These snakes live in tropical and subtropical regions around the world, with terrestrial forms in Asia, Australia, Africa, and the Americas, and marine forms in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They vary greatly in size, from the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah), which may sometimes grow almost 6 m long, to the white-lipped snake (Drysdalia coronoides), which is a mere 18-20 cm long.

 

The generic name is derived from naga, the Sanskrit name of the Indian cobra (below).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic and common names both refer to a distinct lump that the adult male has at the end of the snout, which resembles a clay pot, known as a ghara. This lump is hollow, amplifying a hissing sound that the male emits, which can then be heard far away. The specific name means ‘living in the Ganges’.

The gharial population has declined drastically since the 1930s, and the current number may be less than 1,000 individuals. It is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The name gecko stems from the call of the Southeast Asian tokay gecko (Gekko gecko), rendered as geck-oo or tuc-too.

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek hemisys (‘half’) and daktylos (‘finger’). According to one source, it probably refers to the rows of skin folds under the digits of these geckos, which are grouped in two halves.

 

The specific name honours American-born Indian herpetologist and wildlife conservationist Romulus Earl Whitaker (born 1943), founder of the Madras Snake Park, the Andaman and Nicobar Environment Trust, and the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust, in recognition of his valuable contribution toward the study and conservation of reptiles and other wildlife in India.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek melas (‘black’) and chelys (‘turtle’). Some individuals seem almost black, other are brown or reddish.

 

The specific name is derived from the Latin tri– (‘three’) and iugum (‘collar’), perhaps referring to wrinkles on the neck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Ancient Greek mythology, Python was a huge serpent (sometimes depicted as a dragon), born by the mother goddess Gaia. Python resided in the temple at Delphi, which by the Ancient Greeks was regarded as the centre of the Earth, represented by a stone, which Python guarded.

In his book Fabulae, Roman author Gaius Julius Hyginus (c. 64 B.C. – 17 A.D.) relates that Zeus made love to the goddess Leto. Zeus’s wife Hera got jealous, and when Leto was about to give birth to Apollo and Artemis, Hera made Python pursue Leto, so that she was unable to deliver. However, Leto managed to give birth to the twins, and when Apollo grew up, he wanted to avenge his mother. He travelled to Mount Parnassos, where the monster dwelled, and chased it to the Gaia Temple in Delphi, where he killed it with his arrows.

 

 

 

 

 

The specific name refers to a person in Greek mythology, Molouros, son of Arisbas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The family and common names are adapted from the Ancient Syriac word for these animals, sqinqur.

I have not been able to identify any of the skinks that I encountered in India and Nepal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek geo (‘earth’) and khelone (‘tortoise’).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The common name refers to the fact that the carapace of these turtles lacks horny scales.

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is probably adapted from the Sanskrit citra, which has many meanings, including ‘strange’, ‘conspicuous’, ‘wonderful’, ‘speckled’, ‘excellent’, and ‘brightly coloured’. Make a choice!

 

It buries itself in sand, with only the eyes and the tip of the nose exposed, waiting for suitable prey to pass by. When this happens, its head shoots out of the shell with lightening speed, grabbing the poor victim, which may be a fish, a frog, a worm, a crustacean, a mollusc, or even a small mammal.

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek lissos (‘smooth’ or ‘plain’) and emys (‘freshwater turtle’).

 

The specific name refers to Sri Lanka, called Ceylon in the British colonial time.

 

 

 

 

 

The specific name refers to the spotted carapace of some populations.

 

 

 

 

 

The status of many of the species remains unclear due to the fact that these snakes mostly live underground. They are also called worm snakes due to their similarity to earthworms, for which they are often mistaken. However, a closer view reveals that they have tiny scales and small, indistinct eyes, covered by scales. These eyes, appearing as small dark dots, are light-detecting. They have teeth in the upper jaw.

 

The generic name is derived from Indo (‘Indian’), and Ancient Greek typhlos (‘blind’) and ops (‘eye’).

 

It is unique by being the only known snake to be parthenogenetic, i.e. the young are born without the eggs being fertilized by sexual male cells.

Adults grow to 10 cm long, in rare cases to 15 cm, making it the smallest known snake species.

 

 

 

 

 

The family name is of Semitic origin, meaning ‘dragon’ or ‘lizard beast’. The English name is explained in various ways. Some say it has its origin due to the occasional habit of these animals to stand on their two hind legs, seemingly ‘monitoring’ something. Others say that it arose from an old superstitious belief that they would warn people of the approach of venomous animals.

My experience with the famous Komodo dragon (V. komodoensis) is related on the page Travel episodes – Indonesia 1985: Difficult journey to Komodo.

Previously, the earless monitor lizard (Lanthanotus borneensis) was placed in this family, but has since been moved to a separate family, Lanthanotidae.

 

It is found in south-eastern Iran, Afghanistan, and the Indian Subcontinent. Previously, animals in Indochina, south-western China, the Malaya Peninsula, and Java were included in this species, but are now considered a separate species, the clouded monitor (V. nebulosus).

The specific name is Latin, meaning ‘of Bengal’. Strictly speaking, Bengal is the lowland around the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta, but during the British colonial time, the term ‘Bengal’ indicated a much larger portion of northern India.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Latin name of the pit vipers is derived from Ancient Greek krotalon (‘castanet’), alluding to the rattle on a rattlesnake’s tail. This subfamily is found in Asia and the Americas. The members, which include rattlesnakes, lanceheads, and Asian pit vipers, are distinguished by the presence of a heat-sensing pit organ, located between the eye and the nostril on both sides of the head.

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek kraspedon (‘fringe’ or ‘tassel’) and kephale (‘head’) – whatever that may refer to.

 

The specific name is Latin, meaning ‘furrowed’, derived from striga (‘furrow’).

 

 

 

 

 

The specific name is derived from Ancient Greek trigonon (‘triangle’) and kephale (‘head’), thus ‘with a triangular head’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was previously regarded as a subfamily of the family Ranidae, but was since upgraded to a separate family, containing 13-15 genera and about 210 species.

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek eu (‘good’ or ‘well’) and the Latin phlyctis (‘blister’). It may thus be translated as ‘well equipped with blisters’, alluding to the warty skin of these frogs.

 

The specific name is derived from Ancient Greek kyaneos (‘dark blue’), and again the Latin phlyctis (‘blister’), thus ‘with blue blisters’. The warts on the back of this species may be green or blue (see picture below).

The common name alludes to the fact that, when disturbed, these frogs often skitter along the surface at a tremendous speed.

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek hoplon (‘shield’) and batrakhos (‘frog’).

 

The specific name is Latin, meaning ‘tiger-like’, alluding to the pattern on this frog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name means ‘the false Philautus‘, referring to another genus in this family.

 

The specific name refers to the type locality in Maharashtra.