Thread by @BiIndia

This PhD student from #Kerala wants to show the world that there is more to Indian #wildlife than just tigers and elephants

businessinsider.in/science/enviro…

By @Kavitamajumdar

@Kavitamajumdar Sandeep Das realised that he needed to take up photography to help present his findings to a scientific community to prove the unusual sightings of the rare and exotic birds he spotted. He began as a novice shooting pictures, randomly.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

@Kavitamajumdar His key area of interest remains amphibians and, to some extent, reptiles. They essentially share the same ecosystem, and both are primarily nocturnal. So, if you study one, you are bound to bump into the other frequently.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐸 Melanobatrachus -- Galaxy Frog (Scientific name: Melanobatrachus indicus)

This is one of the rarest, evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered frogs of the Western Ghats. Very little is known about this species, but studies are underway.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐸 Purple Frog aka Mahabali Frog (Scientific name: Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis)

Das and his fellow scientists named it "Mahabali frog" as it emerges from under the ground for only one day, like Kerala's mythological King Mahabali.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

Unfortunately, however, the Purple Frog on its way to the breeding site often gets run over by vehicles, one of the significant threats faced by these amphibians.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐸 Raorchestes resplendens/ Resplendent Shrub Frog (Scientific name: Raorchestes resplendens)

Once thought to be found only in the Anamudi summit, Das and his team later found them in several adjoining areas.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐍 Large-scaled Pit Viper (Scientific name: Trimeresurus macrolepis)

These snakes are best seen in #Munnar as they are common in plantations and roadside bushes. Major threats are habitat conversion and linear intrusions, including roads.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐍 Brown Dispar/Gunther's Vine Snake (Scientific name: Ahaetulla dispar)

These Vine Snakes are harmless to humans, but they are mildly venomous, which is essential in bringing down their prey, including tiny frogs, other snakes, lizards etc.

#Wildlife #wildlifephotography

🐸 Green Reed Frog/Chalazodes Bubble Nest Frog (Scientific name: Raorchestes chalazodes)

This one is endemic to the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve. They breed inside reed clumps. They are direct-developing frogs whose eggs directly hatch out into tiny froglets.

#Wildlife