IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 26(3):224–225 • JAN 2020

Attempted Autophagy in a Checkered Keelback, Fowlea piscator (Schneider 1799)

(Natricidae) from IndiaRahul V. Deshmukh1, Sagar A. Deshmukh2, Swapnil A. Badhekar3, and Sanjay Wasake4

1Ward No. 4, Teacher Colony, Kalmeshwar Brahmani, Nagpur, Maharashtra-441501, India (rahul30.snake@gmail.com)2Kalmeshwar Brahmani, Nagpur, Maharashtra-441501, India (sd.snakefriend@gmail.com)

3Tiwaskarwadi, Raipur, Hingana, Nagpur, Maharashtra-441110, India (swapnilbadhekar86@gmail.com)4Mahajanwadi near Shiwaji Park, Hanuman Temple, Hingana, Nagpur, Maharashtra-441110 (sanjaywasake01@gmail.com)

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IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • VOL15, NO 4 • DEC 2008 189TABLE OF CONTENTS

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E S

Chasing Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) in Wisconsin: On the Road to Understanding the Ecology and Conservation of the Midwest’s Giant Serpent ...................... Joshua M. Kapfer 190

The Shared History of Treeboas (Corallus grenadensis) and Humans on Grenada: A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson 198

R E S E A R C H A R T I C L E S

The Texas Horned Lizard in Central and Western Texas ....................... Emily Henry, Jason Brewer, Krista Mougey, and Gad Perry 204 The Knight Anole (Anolis equestris) in Florida

.............................................Brian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212

C O N S E R V A T I O N A L E R T

World’s Mammals in Crisis ............................................................................................................................................................. 220 More Than Mammals ...................................................................................................................................................................... 223 The “Dow Jones Index” of Biodiversity ........................................................................................................................................... 225

H U S B A N D R Y

Captive Care of the Central Netted Dragon ....................................................................................................... Shannon Plummer 226

P R O F I L E

Kraig Adler: A Lifetime Promoting Herpetology ................................................................................................ Michael L. Treglia 234

C O M M E N T A R Y

The Turtles Have Been Watching Me ........................................................................................................................ Eric Gangloff 238

B O O K R E V I E W

Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann, J.S. Chanson, N.A. Cox, R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell 243

CONSERVATION RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Conservation Research Reports ................................. 245 NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History ................................. 247 NEWBRIEFS ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 248 EDITORIAL INFORMATION ..................................................................................................................................................... 251 FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ............................................................................................... 252

Front Cover. Shannon Plummer.Totat et velleseque audant mo estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque moditia erere nonsedis ma sectiatur ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos accullabo.

Back Cover. Michael KernTotat et velleseque audant mo

estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus

aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque

moditia erere nonsedis ma sectia-tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as

IRC

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REPTILES & AMPHIBIANSC O N S E R V AT I O N A N D N AT U R A L H I S T O R Y

Copyright © 2020. Rahul V. Deshmukh. All rights reserved.

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The Checkered Keelback or Asiatic Watersnake (Fowlea piscator) is among the most frequently encountered

aquatic snakes and possibly the most plentiful species of snake in India (Whitaker and Captain 2005). It inhabits the whole of India to Baluchistan and the northwestern frontier prov-inces and extends into the Indo-Chinese region as far east as Myitkina in upper Burma (Smith 1943). It is very common in central India (Nande and Deshmukh 2007; Deshmukh et al. 2015), where it occurs in and around rivers, ponds, and paddy fields. Extremely active, these snakes are capable

of jumping off the ground, and in water they swim nimbly and are capable divers (Daniel 2002). They feed on frog eggs, tadpoles, frogs, fish, and occasionally on rodents and birds (Whitaker and Captain 2005). Herein we record an unusual attempt of self-canibbalism or autophagous behavior. We rescued a gravid adult female Checkered Keelback (~1,120 mm total length) at 0845 h on 5 August 2019 in a seasonal pond near Buddha Vihar, Mahajanwadi, Hingana, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India (21°08’78.18”N, 78°97’78.18”E) and placed it in a clean transparent plastic jar. The snake was

Fig. 1. An apparent attempt at autophagy by a Checkered Keelback (Fowlea piscator) in India. Photograph by Rahul V. Deshmukh.

IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians ISSN 1098-6324

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very aggressive when rescued and continued to strike repeat-edly in the container. At 1000 h the next morning, Sanjay Wasake found the snake dead while biting its own tail (Fig. 1). Autophagy has been occasionally observed in snakes but is rarely documented (Mitchell et al. 1982; Rossi and Rossi 2002; Mattison 2007). Carlino and Pauwels (2015) attrib-uted such behavior to stress generated by captivity, which appeared to be the case in this instance as well.

AcknowledgementsWe are grateful to Swapnil Bhondawe, Subham Katgube, Krutik Bhachale, Ritek Shete, and Sagar Kanfade, who have helped us in many ways.

Literature CitedCarlino, P. and O.S.G. Pauwels. 2015. A case of self-cannibalism in a wild-caught

South-Italian Alps Viper, Vipera aspis hugyi (Squamata: Viperidae). Bulletin of

the Chicago Herpetological Society 50: 137.

Daniel, J.C. 2002. The Book of Indian Reptiles and Amphibians. Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai, India.

Deshmukh, R.V., S.A. Deshmukh, and S.A. Badhekar. 2015. Rescued records of snakes from Nagpur District, Maharashtra with data on unrecorded species. Reptile Rap 17: 34–46.

Mitchell, J.C., C.A. Pague, and D.L. Early. 1982. Elaphe obsoleta (Black Rat Snake). Autophagy. Herpetological Review 13: 47.

Mattison, C. 2007. The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, USA.

Nande, R. and R. Deshmukh. 2007. Snakes of Amaravati District including Melghat, Maharashtra, with important records of the Indian egg eater, montane trinket snake and Indian smooth snake. Zoos’ Print Journal 22: 2920–2924.

Rossi, J. and R. Rossi. 2002. “Hoop snake” found — old wive’s tale may have basis in fact: Autophagous behavior in a Southern Ring-necked Snake, Diadophis punctatus punctatus, Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological Society 37: 85–86.

Smith, M.A. 1943. The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Volume III – Serpentes. Taylor and Francis, London.

Whitaker, R. and A. Captain. 2004. Snakes of India. The Field Guide. Draco Books, Chennai, India.

IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 26(3):224–225 • JAN 2020DESHMUKH ET AL.