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P. Santhoshkumar ¹, P. Kannan ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Zoology and Wildlife Biology, Government Arts College, Udhagamandalam 643 002, IN

Abstract

The caenophidian snake genus Xylophis Beddome, 1878, is endemic to the southern Western Ghats region of peninsular India. Within the genus Xylophis, three species are currently recognized - Xylophis perroteti (Dumeril, Bibron and Dumeril, 1854), Xylophis stenorhynchus (Gunther, 1875) and a new species Xylophis captaini (Gower and Winkler, 2007). Among these snakes, X. perroteti has restricted distribution in the Nilgiris and Wayanaad in North Kerala. This snake found in high ranges of the Western Ghats over 1500 m altitude in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

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P. Santhoshkumar ¹, P. Kannan ¹

Affiliations
1 Herpetology Laboratory, Department of Zoology and Wildlife Biology, Government Arts College, Udhagamandalam 643 002, IN

Abstract

Among Indian snakes, ophiophagy behaviour is found in the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) which regularly feeds on other snakes, and this has also been recorded in many other species like Bungarus fasciatus, Bungarus caeruleus and Calliophis nigrescens. This note documents predation by the Striped narrow-headed snake, Xylophis perroteti on Perrotet's shieldtail snake, Plectrurus perrotetii. Both are endemic species and common in the Nilgiris.

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