Catalogue of Indian Herpetological Specimens in Thiruvananthapuram Natural History Museum, Kerala, India

Herpetological specimens in Thiruvananthapuram Museum

Abstract

We catalogued entire, fluid-preserved, voucher specimens of native Indian amphibian and reptilian species in the Thiruvananthapuram Natural History Museum (TNHM), Kerala, India. We inventoried and found a total of 152 species, comprising of one caecilian, 96 anurans, 11 saurians, 44 serpents and three chelonians. There are a few recently deposited or described primary and secondary types of some rhacophorid frogs (Ghatixalus, Mercurana, Raorchestes) and gekkonid lizards (Cnemaspis), while most others are non-type specimens. The collections almost wholly come from Kerala, including both historical and recently deposited materials. A few materials are those procured by exchange, or purchased or collected from elsewhere in India (e.g. Pondicherry; Tamil Nadu). Most of the recent collections are anurans collected by two noted batrachologists Sujith V. Gopalan and Anil Zachariah and their parties. Most of the snake and a few lizard collections were century old historical material collected from Thiruvananthapuram by a pioneering naturalist H.S. Ferguson.