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International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences Research Article
Diversity, taxonomy and conservation status of herpetofauna of Ramnagar forest division in Western Terai Arc Landscape, India
Gajendra Singh Mehra, Deepa Bisht, Sarita Bisht, Harendra Singh Bargali, Tanveer Ahmad, Neha Verma, Nakulananda Mohanty and Sushil Kumar Dutta
Year : 2021 | Volume: 6 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 63-75
Received on: 02/27/2021
Revised on: 04/16/2021
Accepted on: 04/18/2021
Published on: 04/25/2021
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Gajendra Singh Mehra, Deepa Bisht, Sarita Bisht, Harendra Singh Bargali, Tanveer Ahmad, Neha Verma, Nakulananda Mohanty and Sushil Kumar Dutta( 2021).
Diversity, taxonomy and conservation status of herpetofauna of Ramnagar forest division in Western Terai Arc Landscape, India
. International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences, 6( 2), 63-75.
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Abstract
Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) is a highly biodiverse region and is listed among the 200 important ecoregions of the world. Situated in the foot plains of Himalaya, TAL is distributed among two countries, India and Nepal. The present study was conducted in the western part of TAL known as Ramnagar Forest division (RFD). We used the Visual encounter survey method, along with other methods for sampling. Total 10 species of anurans, 13 species of lizards, 20 species of snakes, and 4 species of Testudinata were reported in RFD. Out of the total 47 species recorded in RFD, six species are listed in various threatened categories of IUCN, and 27 species were protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, (1972) of India. 11 species were listed in CITES. We found that RFD accommodates a good diversity of amphibians and reptiles and also is an abode of some important herpetofauna species such as King cobra (Ophiophagus hannah), Burmese python (Python bivittatus), Indian monitor (Varanus bengalensis) and Elongate tortoise (Indotestudo elongata).
Keywords
Amphibia, Reptiles, Wildlife, Visual Encounter Survey, Ecoregion.
