About the Journal

Hamadryad was established in 1976 and is a free and open-access biological science journal aimed at publishing novel research and observations on the herpetofauna of the Indian subcontinent. It includes full-length articles and short notes on the natural history, ecology, taxonomy, captive husbandry, and conservation of reptiles and amphibians of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

Hamadryad publishes two volumes per year in English. The journal was paused from publication from 2018-2021, but it resumed in 2022 and is now revived from its hiatus with semiannual online publication.

History

After a 46-year run, Hamadryad came to rest in 2017... and is now about to get a new life-lease as an online journal. Since its humble beginnings as a cyclostyled newsletter, it has hosted some of the most pivotal herp notes and articles from the subcontinent. These include papers on the first reptile surveys in the Andamans and Nicobars, snakebite mitigation, and gharial status and conservation needs. There was a dedicated network of herp pals in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Burma who would send news from their area including newspaper clippings: meticulously cut out, captioned, and mailed from remote post offices. Hamadryad's subscribers and contributors included herpetologists of all ages, shapes and sizes and some of those youngsters are now venerable professors and such, at esteemed institutions. We are delighted that it has been possible to resurrect it, thanks to all the good people who have come forward to help with the editing and online publishing.