Oligodon kheriensis

Coral Red Kukri
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Colubrinae
Genus: Oligodon
Species: O. kheriensis
Binomial name
Oligodon kheriensis
Acharji and Ray, 1936[1]

Oligodon kheriensis or the coral kukri snake is a kukri snake that was first described in 1936 from the North Kheri Division.[2]

In 2014 and 2015, dead red coral kukri snakes were found in Nainital district of Uttarakhand.

Characteristics

The coral kukri snake is bright orange to coral red coloured.

Distribution and habitat

Oligodon kheriensis was known from only two specimens. The first was found in the Kheri Division of Uttar Pradesh, India, and one was found in Mahendranagar in western Nepal. In 2002, one individual was recorded in the vicinity of the Chitwan National Park.[3]

Ecology and behaviour

Coral kukri snake on a tree branch

Little is known of the ecology of the coral kukri snake. It is thought to be nocturnal and living underground most of the time, and that it can dig using its rostral scales. It probably preys on earth worms and larvae.

Conservation

In India, Oligodon kheriensis is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, Schedule IV.

References

  1. ↑ Acharji, M. N., Ray, H. C. (1936). A new species of Oligodon from the United Provinces (India). Records of the Indian Museum, Calcutta 38: 519–520.
  2. ↑ Green, M. (2010). Molecular Phylogeny of the Snake Genus Oligodon (Serpentes: Colubridae), with an Annotated Checklist and Key. M. Sc. thesis, University of Toronto.
  3. ↑ Pandey, D. (2012). Snakes in the vicinity of Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Herpetological Conservation and Biology 7 (1): 46–57.
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