In the primary 4 months of 2021, the Western Ghats offered new butterflies, frogs, fruit flies, and even a freshwater crab. Joining the checklist is a tiny snake of simply 20 cm size with iridescent scales – Xylophis deepaki, first stumbled upon in a coconut plantation in Kanyakumari, is now reported to be an endemic species of Tamil Nadu and has been sighted in a few areas within the southern a part of the Western Ghats. The species is named in honour of Indian herpetologist Deepak Veerappan for his contribution in erecting a new subfamily Xylophiinae to accommodate wooden snakes. The staff suggests the frequent title Deepak’s wooden snake.
Wood snakes
Wood snakes are innocent, sub-fossorial and infrequently discovered whereas digging soil in farms and below the logs within the Western Ghat forests. They feed on earthworms and probably different invertebrates. Interestingly, their shut family members are present in northeast India and Southeast Asia and are identified to be arboreal.
Drier habitat
“This new species is found in the drier regions and in lower altitudes around Agasthyamalai hills. The other Xylophis were reported from cold higher altitudes, of 1,700 m and above, in the Nilgiris and the Anaimalai. Its close relative, Captain’s wood snake, is known from the western slopes of the Western Ghats in the Kerala,” explains Surya Narayanan, from Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Bengaluru, and first creator of the paper not too long ago printed in Vertebrate Zoology.
The snake was beforehand confused with X. captaini, however detailed morphological research confirmed that the it had a broader off-white collar and extra ventral scales. Further, DNA research indicated that it was certainly a new species and was a shut relative to X. captaini.
The new discover will increase the overall variety of at present recognised wooden snakes to 5 species. The paper provides that little or no data is out there on the exact distributions of every species, their pure historical past, inhabitants standing, feeding and reproductive ecology, and conservation standing.
“These are burrowing snakes and we have planned to carry out more studies to understand its geographical distribution,” provides Pratyush P. Mohapatra, Scientist on the Zoological Survey of India, who is predicated in Jabalpur. He provides that because the snake was discovered from rubber, banana, and coconut farms, it appears to be effectively tailored to reasonable habitat adjustments, however extra research are wanted to establish its standing.
