Multiple lineages of snakes evolved independently over time to colonise different marine habitats. Sea snakes are a recent lineage of elapid snakes with terrestrial origins from Australian snakes and diversified largely within the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Phylogenetic studies date sea snake evolution back to 6-8 million years but rapid speciation seems to have occurred 2-3 million years ago in Southeast Asia. Sea snakes are the most speciose (species-rich) group of aquatic snakes, contributing to 85% of the marine reptile fauna. The … Read More
Bycatch Mortality and Poaching of Ganges River Dolphins in Malda District, West Bengal
On the morning of November 3, 2019, I witnessed the bycatch mortality of a sub-adult Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica), measuring 2.75′ feet and about 22 kg, in a drift gillnet set for catching fish near Jotkasturi, Panchanandpur, Malda, West Bengal. A Wallago attu catfish was also caught in the gillnet. The fishermen who had landed the dolphin said that it might have got accidentally entangled. Usually, in such cases, fishermen fear penalties being imposed, and are not … Read More
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