Rediscovery of Vosmer’s Writhing Skink Lygosoma vosmaerii (Gray, 1839) (Reptilia: Scincidae) with a note on its taxonomy

An updated and annotated list of Indian lizards (Reptilia: Sauria) based on a review of distribution records and checklists of Indian reptiles

“…Some of the new developments include records of Hemidactylus persicus from Gujarat (Vyas et al 2006) and Japalura kaulbackii in Arunachal Pradesh (from Kunte & Manthey 2009). Recent rediscoveries include that of Japalura sagittifera from Arunachal Pradesh (from Kunte & Manthey 2009) and Lygosoma vosmaerii from Andhra Pradesh (Seetharamaraju et al 2009). Doubts over the occurrence of H. karenorum in India (Zug et al 2007;Mahony & Zug 2008) and questions on the taxonomic validity of H. mahendrai and H. subtriedrus had been raised (Zug et al 2007) and acknowledged by other workers (Giri & Bauer 2008, Giri et al 2009).…”

Further comments on the systematic status of Lygosoma vosmaerii (Gray, 1839)

“…Therefore, Vyas' (2001) proposal is not rejectable at this juncture, however, the present rediscovery of L. vosmerii (Seetharamaraju et al 2009) considerably supports the validity of the taxon (albeit on the basis of a single specimen). But still the taxonomic status of L. vosmerii is questionable on the basis of the voucher (BNHM 1453) from Velavadar National Park, Bhavanagar District, Gujarat (Vyas 2001) and this clearly suggests further debate on the taxonomic status of L. vosmaerii (Gray, 1839).…”

“…Also, Das (2003) did not mention it in the list of reptiles of India. But recent published note on 'Rediscovery of Vosmer's Writhing Skink Lygosoma vosmaerii (Gray, 1839) (Reptilia: Scincidae) with a note on its taxonomy' by Seetharamaraju et al (2009) stated that the species' taxonomic status is valid. Here I take the opportunity to comment on the systematic status of the L. vosmerii (Gray 1839) and address it as a debatable subject.…”

“…Here I take the opportunity to comment on the systematic status of the L. vosmerii (Gray 1839) and address it as a debatable subject. Seetharamaraju et al (2009) were able to collect a second specimen (NHM.OU.REP.1-2009) of the species, after 170 years of description, and there was no doubt in its identification. But Boulenger (1890) mentioned it as an anomalous specimen and Vyas (2001Vyas ( & 2009, treated the L. vosmaerii as an anomalous specimen of L. lineata on the basis of a specimen from Gujarat, which has five fingers in right forelimb.…”

<B>Mammals of Papikonda Hills, northern Eastern Ghats, India</B>

“…The Eastern Ghats lansdcape is a treasure trove of biodiversity where several species endemic to the landscape such as the Golden Gecko Calodactyloides aureus (Daniel et al 1986;Javed et al 2007), the Jeypore Ground Gecko Geckoella jeyporensis (Agarwal et al 2012), the Slender Loris (Singh et al 2000) and the Critically Endangered Jerdon's Courser Rhinoptilus bitorquatus (Jeganathan et al 2002) have been reported. The northern section of the Eastern Ghats in particular contains extensive stretches of moist deciduous and semi-evergreen forests harboring high biodiversity and several rare species (Javed et al 2007;Seetharamaraju et al 2009;Sreekar & Srinivasulu 2010); however, there is no published baseline information on the mammal diversity of the northern Eastern Ghats, and there are currently no updated lists of mammals for the landscape.…”