Burton K. Lim Section Editor: Taprobanica, the journal of Asian Biodiversity
The past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us a lot about emerging diseases, but also transmission of infections and ways of preventing future outbreaks from spreading globally. However, there is still much to be learned, such as how the culprit coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 mutates into different variants, what is the intermediate host that allowed the virus to jump to humans, and a better understanding of immune responses to this severe acute respiratory illness.
Submitted date: 28 May 2021 Published date: 22 November 2021 Pp. 146
ERRATUM :Amarasinghe, A.A.T., S. Karunarathna, M. Madawala, and A. de Silva (2021). Two new rupicolous day geckos of the Cnemaspis alwisi group (Reptilia: Gekkonidae) from Sri Lanka. Taprobanica, 10 (1): 23–38 + pls. 3–8.
Submitted date: 26 August 2021 Published date: 22 November 2021 Pp. 140–145
LETTER TO EDITOR: A response to Narayanan et al. (2021) “On the validity of the recently described bush frog Raorchestes kollimalai Gowande, Ganesh & Mirza, 2020” published in Zootaxa
Zeeshan A. Mirza* & Gaurang Gowande *E-mail: snakeszeeshan@gmail.com
Narayanan et al. (2021) make extremely grave allegations of ‘misrepresentation of data’ by Gowande et al. (2020). Narayanan et al. (2021) found serious flaws in the publication dealing with the description of Raorchestes kollimalai by Gowande, Ganesh & Mirza (2020). The authors state that Gowande et al. (2020) overlooked many errors, which consequently raises questions on the validity of R. kollimalai. We here respond to their comments, dispel their false allegations of misrepresentation of data and provide evidence for the validity of Raorchestes kollimalai. A common practice while writing a response/critique of a published paper is to contact the editor of the journal in which the paper was published, which, in this case, is TAPROBANICA. However, Narayanan et al. (2021) chose to publish their critique in a different journal, ZOOTAXA and thus, were unaware of the erratum to the paper on the new species. The erratum that was published in a recent issue of Taprobanica (Gowande et al. 2021) resolves some of the concerns raised by Narayanan et al. (2021). These concerns were a mistake on the part of Gowande et al. (2020) but by no means did the authors intend to hide or misrepresent data as accused by Narayanan et al. (2021).
The painted bat, Kerivoula picta (Pallas, 1767) is considered one of the most aesthetically appealing bats in Sri Lanka with bright orange fur and black wings. However, very little information is available with regard to the ecology of this species in both local and global contexts. Of its roosting habits, Phillips (1980) reports that in Sri Lanka the bat is usually found roosting among banana leaves while it has been observed utilising tall grass species and even an abandoned nest of a Baya Weaver (Plocius philippinus) for this purpose. Here we report an observation of the species using a man-made artefact for roosting during the day.
Submitted date: 24 May 2021 Accepted date: 9 September 2021 Published date: 22 November 2021 Pp. 135–137
Gliding behaviour of Indian giant flying squirrel (Petaurista philippensis)
D. Barthwal*, A.K. Jangid & N. Dharaiya *E-mail: diksha.b1608@gmail.com
The Indian giant flying squirrel or large brown flying squirrel, Petaurista philippensis (Elliot, 1839) is one of 13 gliding squirrel species found in India. Nocturnal by nature, they have ability to glide up to 150 m. We studied its gliding habit in the human-modified landscape of the Kevdi ecotourism site (22.5198ºN, 73.9356ºE; Fig. 1), Panchmahal District, between two protected areas in Gujarat: Ratanmahal Sloth Bear Sanctuary and Jambughoda Wildlife Sanctuary. The Kevdi ecotourism site is a known locality of this species. Here, we present basic information on the gliding ecology of the species in the dry deciduous forests of central Gujarat.