Herpetofauna of Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary , Uttar Pradesh , India

For Author Details, Author Contribution and Acknowledgements see end of this article. Abstract: A herpetofaunal inventory based on field surveys, literature records and photographic records is presented for Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary and its environs, situated in the Terai region of Uttar Pradesh, India. We list a total of 10 species of amphibians and 42 species of reptiles from the area. Compiled observations presented here include biological notes on the Critically Endangered Gavialis gangeticus and new locality records and natural history information of poorly known species including Polypedates taeniatus and Sibynophis sagittarius. Besides recording members of currently recognized species complexes, the study also documents species that were either conferred to closely related species (e.g., Fejervarya cf. teraiensis) or their identity remains to be ascertained (e.g., Kaloula sp.). The present study indicates that species count at Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary is likely to increase with additional surveys and systematic work.


INTRODUCTION
Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary (27055'-28025'N & 810-81025'E), is located in Bahraich District of Uttar Pradesh.This typical Terai ecosystem is spread over an area of 400km2 and is characterized by extensive alluvial plains, wetlands, grasslands, woodlands and moist forests.The vegetation of the study area can be categorized into riverine forests, mixed Sal forest, teak Tectona grandis plantation, woodlands and alluvial grasslands.Except riverine forests which are characterised by the dominance of moist evergreen species, all other categories are deciduous in nature (Tripathi & Singh 2009).The riverine habitat (Girwa River) of the Sanctuary (18km length) is bounded upstream by the Nepalese border and downstream by the Girijapuri Barrage.The sanctuary is home to large animals such as tiger, elephant, leopard and Gangetic dolphin, and is regarded as an important habitat of the Critically Endangered Gavialis gangeticus.The Sanctuary also holds a key population of Crocodilus palustris and several freshwater turtle species.Past studies on herpetofauna include those of Hallermann et al. (2001), Basu (1989) and Talukdar & Dasgupta (1977).However, general information on diversity and distribution of herpetofaunal species is scanty.

Study Area
The field investigations were conducted in the following Large wetland with extensive macrophytic growth (Image 1).

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Field records for the study comes from observations of Geographic coordinates for survey sites were recorded with a Garmin 12 receiver GPS.Interactions with local residents were held to make them aware of the local herpetofauna and to supplement field observations.Species were identified using the keys of Smith (1935Smith ( , 1943)); Schleich & Kästle (2002); Das (1995);and Dutta (1997).
Nomenclature and taxonomic arrangement in the text follows Frost (2009) for amphibian, Das (2003) and Uetz (2007) for reptiles.However, the species showed close resemblance with Fejervarya syhadrensis (absence of mid-dorsal line, absence of dorsal longitudinal skin folds and small SVL 33mm) but only differs in absence of reddish or orange patches which considered to be an important character for F. syhadrensis Type locality of the species is Purnia (Bihar).We observed a colour photograph of the species from Behala area of West Bengal.Eastward, the species is recorded from north bank alluvial grasslands of Assam (Ahmed & Dutta 2000).Elsewhere, it was recorded from Nepal and Bangladesh (Anders et al. 1998).

Chiromantis dudhwaensis (Ray, 1992) (Image 4):
Calling aggregation of the species was recorded near Base Camp and Ferry Ghat during June 2008.Calling individuals were photographed from waterlogged and marshy areas inhabiting shrubs, grass blades and Ipomea sp. at 50cm-1.5mabove substrate.A detail note on the breeding habit of the species appears in Biswas (2000).

Reptiles Gekkonidae Gray, 1825
Hemidactylus flaviviridis Rüpell, 1835 (Image 5): Base Camp, Watch Tower; Individuals also observed on Ficus tree bark at 170cm height and under woodpiles near houses.This is the common house gecko of the study area.Earlier records of the species is from Nishangada (15km from the base camp) by Hallermann et al. (2001).
Hemidactylus brookii Gray, 1845: Individuals were found inhibiting house walls up to 3m from the ground.
However, majority of the encounters are from low walls, culverts and on the ground.Gravid females observed in the month of June.
Employing a molecular systematic approach Bauer et al.All the individuals had small yellowish bars that broaden laterally and dissolve into yellowish edged lateral scales.
Thus, corresponds to the variety forma typica.
Lycodon jara (Shaw, 1802): Talukdar & Dasgupta (1977) reported a specimen of Lycodon jara from Katerniaghat and was the first record of the species from Uttar Pradesh.Further western record of the species is from Dehradun and Rajaji National Park (Hussain & Roy 1992).Although the species was repeatedly collected from Orissa, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh (Boulenger 1913 Sibynophis sagittarius is often considered as junior synonym of Sibynophis subpunctatus (Wall 1907& Morgan 1973).Captain et al. (2004) showed that S. sagittarius and S.
subpunctatus are morphologically distinct and geographically disjunct in their distribution.S. sagittarius is currently known from Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal (Wall 1923;BMNH 1930.5.8. 161   nesting from July and continue up to October.Das (1995) reported that in the Chambal region, the species nests from end August up to mid-September.
It is not conclusively known if double clutching occurs in the species in which case the first clutch could be laid at the In northern India (Chambal River), Vasudevan (1998) recorded the nesting season from late July to end of October with peak activity during late August.We presume that similar nesting season prevail in Katerniaghat also.During the present survey, few herpetofaunal species were recorded, the identity of which are either unknown or conferred to closely related species (e,g, Kaloula sp., Fejervarya sp.Fejervarya cf.teraiensis).These provisionally identified species may represent previously unknown species, or are members of cryptic species complexes.

Nilssonia hurum (Gray
According to Bain et al. (2003), most of the species complexes are widespread, although the member species can have only limited ranges within this broad range.Members of the species complexes encountered are Calotes versicolor (Zug et al. 2006), Lycodon aulicus, Xenochrophis piscator (Vogel & David 2006).Sankaran (1989) reported Dendrelaphis pictus from Dudhwa National Park which appears to be the westernmost distributional limit for the species and also indicates its possible occurrence in Katerniaghat.However, D. pictus is regarded as a species complex and several populations from localities: Base Camp (28020.243'N& 81007.855'E):Human habitation surrounded by degraded grasslands, secondary growth and abandoned constructions; Boat point (28020.310'N& 81007.858'E):Open grassland area and river; Girjapuri Barrage road (28016.557'N& 81006.140'E):Forest road surrounded by thick woodland and waterbodies; Vaisalot, Nishangada (28014.155'N& 81012.919'E):Deciduous forest, teak plantation and swampy areas; Mayla Nullah (28020.396'N& 81006.876'E):small channel of Girwa River having thick forest and cane brakes along two sides; Kauriala (28018.401'N& 81005.586'E):large riverine habitat with dense riverside grasslands; Bhabanipur Village (28019.968'N& 81008.738'E):Human habitation and grazing lands, scrub and open forest; Amba (28019.142'N,81009.851'E):riverside habitat with grazing lands and deciduous forest; Amba Ghat (28018.924'N& 81010.869'E):riverside open area with human habitation and plantation areas; Watch Tower Point (28019.968'N& 81008.738'E):Riverside extensive riverside moist grassland; Madhab Nullah (28020.277'N& 81006.135'E):channel of Girwa River with extensive grassland and woodland on both side; Gharial Nesting Island (28020.146'N& 81008.824'E):Sandy river island with grassy patches, the mass gharial nesting spot; Mahadeva Taal: 28018.401'N& 81005.586'E: photographic records.Field observations were made opportunistically.Data have been supplemented with the earlier observations of DB and SC from in and around the Sanctuary.Active searches involving turning rocks and logs, peeling bark and digging through leaf litter.During the day, besides active search, basking reptiles were also searched along forest trails, forest edges and along river banks.Crocodiles were observed from motor boats, river shore

Bufonidae Gray, 1825
Duttaphrynus melanostictus (Schneider, 1799): Recorded from Base camp, Girjapuri Barrage, Bhabanipur and near staff quarters.Frequently encountered in and around human habitations, plantations, river banks, under rocks, wood piles and roadside areas.Duttaphrynus stomaticus (Lütken, 1862): Recorded from near Base camp during June 2008.The individual was feeding on insects on a forest trail surrounded by human habitation and degraded grassland at around 2000h.Calling aggregation was observed during June.Individuals found to inhabit temporary water pool, mud bank and Image 1. Map of Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, India open grassy space.Calling males are yellowish in colour dorsally.This colouration is reported to be an indicator of good general physiological condition and sexual activity in males (Abdulali 1985).Juveniles observed in the month of June along the river bank.The species frequently observed as road-kill on the segment between Katerniaghat to Bicchia.Fejervarya cf.teraiensis (Dubois, 1984): Recorded from Boat point.Individuals had a broad cream coloured mid dorsal line; dorsum with longitudinal skin folds, light in colour, whitish patches along side of body, forelimb and hind limb not very distinctly barred.Observed in moist grass near river.Fejervarya teraiensis was reported from Uttar Pradesh by Hegde et al. (2009) and eastward up to Nagaland (Ao et al. 2003).However, the species is reported to be present in the entire Terai zone of Nepal inhibiting 71-400 m elevation (Schleich & Kästle 2002).Fejervarya sp.: Recorded from Boat point and base camp.Individuals of the species are characterised by absence of a mid-dorsal line; dorsum with dark brown blotches, longitudinal skin fold absent, limbs barred throughout.It inhabits areas with moist grass near seasonal and perennial water bodies.The species differs from Fejervarya nepalensis in not having a mid dorsal line, from Fejervarya pierrei in absence of middorsal line and long longitudinal skin folds, from F. teraiensis in having a small size (F.teraiensis, SVL 43-51).Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org| May 2012 | 4(5): 2553-2568

( 2010 )
Photographed by SC on metalled forest road in the buffer area of Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary on 06 June 2010.The area was surrounded by teak plantation area.

Image 9 .
Lycodon aulicus Lycodon aulicus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Image 9): First individual was found in a crevice of a wooden window frame ca.2.5m above ground at around 1900h during June 2008.Another individual was obtained from a wall crack of the same building during June.One individual was killed by a Rattus sp.

Image 12 ."
Bungarus fasciatus active on a forest trail at night (Ramesh Pandey, pers.comm.June 2008).Naja naja (Linnaeus, 1758) (Image 13): Recorded from Nishangada while it was crossing a paved road surrounded by teak plantation area at 1030hr during June.The second individual was killed when it entered human habitation near Base Camp.This venomous species is locally known as Observed in the Amba-Bhawanipur Village watch tower point area in riverside habitat close to grassland-forest edge.Juvenile observed basking in riverside grass patch close to forest trail.During summer, one adult was seen in a tree hole at the base of the trunk.Single individual was recorded basking on a flat, sandy riverbank of Amba ghat at around 1030h during December 2008.Two individuals of Nilssonia gangeticus were also observed at the same spot in December 2008.Local people narrated that the species start

Image 13 .
Naja naja beginning of the rainy season in July or even earlier in June when the monsoon start, while the second clutch could follow about a month and half later in August-September.Ashutosh Tripathi, studying the reproductive biology of the species confirms its earliest nesting on 17 July in the Ganga River in Farrukhabad District in Uttar Pradesh.Nilssonia gangeticus (Cuvier, 1825): Recorded at various points along the 4km Girwa River stretch from boat point to Amba Ghat.Frequently observed on newly emerged sandbars where they bask with gharials.Individuals often spotted while surfacing for breathing.One individual was seen feeding on submerged vegetation during February 2009.
photographed while it was basking on a log close to watch tower river bank at around 0930hr during March 2009.Two individuals of P. tentoria were also basking on the same log.We are unable to comment on the subspecific status of the individual encountered.The nominate subspecies Pangshura smithii smithii characterised by a blotched plastron is known from Katerniaghat(Das 1995).
south-east Asia and Sundaland have been recently described as new with the taxonomy of the group in the subcontinent remaining unresolved(Rooijen & Vogel 2008; Vogel &   Rooijen 2008).Boiga trigonata, reported as fairly common in the Terai and Duns of Nepal(Fleming & Fleming 1974), might also occur in Katerniaghat.Similarly, we predict the occurrence of Coelognathus helena helena, Lycodon striatus, Psammophis condanarus, Oligodon arnensis and even rare species like Oligodon kheriensis and Elachistodon westermanni.The Girwa River is recorded within the natural distribution of Batagur dhongoka and Batagur kachuga(Fritz & Havas 2007) and recorded from nearby areas of Terai(Mitchell & Rhodin 1996) in southern Nepal.DB collected secondary information on occurrence of both the species from Katerniaghat Sanctuary.However, subsequent field surveys failed to record the two species from the Sanctuary.Thus, it has been hypothesized that the two species are either locally extirpated from their habitats in the Girwa or have become extremely rare because of ecological changes as a result of storage of water after the construction of barrage at Kailashpuri.Thus, while considering the reptilian diversity of Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary the possibility of local extirpations of several species as a result of deforesteation in Nepal and modification of river courses and discharge should also be given cognizance.The Sanctuary is one of the last remaining habitats of the Critically Endangered Gharial (Choudhury et al. 2011).Among the threatened species, Gravialis gangeticus, Crocodilus palustris, Chitra indica, Nilssonia hurum, Nilssonia gangeticus, Melanochelys tricarinata, Pangshura tecta, Geoclemys hamiltoni, Python bivittatus, Varanus bengalensis and Varanus

Microhylidae Günther, 1858 Kaloula sp. (Image 2): The
dislodged from tree hole by a Varanus bengalensis.The second individual was recorded on 21 June at 1900h.Its head was protruding from a hole in a standing dead tree ca.1.2m above ground.Both frogs were found near base camp close to grassland forest edge.The two individuals showed colouration similar to K.

Rhacophoridae Hoffman, 1932 Polypedates taeniatus (Boulenger, 1906) (Image 3):
Ray (1991)reported the species as Rhacophorus tanieatus from Dudhwa National Park and recorded the habitat of the species as tall grassy patches near dense Sal Shorea robusta forest with considerable undergrowth of herbaceous plants.However, during this study individuals were only recorded from open grassland.
Hallermann et al. (2001)ill endemic agamid byHallermann et al. (2001)from Nishangada, Uttar Pradesh, needs to be verified.As the collection in that paper also includes specimens collected from northeastern India and northern West Bengal, so we presume that record s of C. maria, E. multifasciata and H. platyurus might have been collected from eastern India and the collection localities are mistakenly recorded as "Nishangada".