List of endemic mammals of Sri Lanka

Last updated

Sri Lanka is home to 21 endemic mammals. [1] Number of terrestrial mammals that have been recorded from the country is 91. [2] Additionally there are 28 marine mammals in the oceans surrounding the island. Being an island Sri Lanka lacks land area to supports large animals. [3] However fossil evidence of large archaic species of rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses, and lions have been discovered. The flora and fauna of Sri Lanka is mostly understudied. [4] Therefore, the number of endemics could be underestimated. All three endemic genera Solisorex, Feroculus and Srilankamys, of Sri Lanka are monotypic. [5]

The endemic status of two Sri Lankan shrews has undergone changes as they have been reported in India recently. [1] The Kelaart's long-clawed shrew (Feroculus feroculus) and the Sri Lanka highland shrew (Suncus montanus) were recorded from southern India. At the same time taxonomic revisions have indicated that the flame-striped jungle squirrel (Funambulus layardi), the red slender loris (Loris tardigradus) and two species of mouse deer, Moschiola meminna and M. kathygre are endemic to Sri Lanka. That leaves the number of endemic mammals in Sri Lanka at 16. Meanwhile, a group of researchers have described a new shrew species Crocidura hikmiya from the Sinharaja Forest Reserve in 2007. [6] The discovery leads to increase the ultimate number of endemics to 21 at present.

For Sri Lanka, small mammals are of special importance as they constitute a notable portion of the mammalian fauna of the country. [7] Of the 91 species of mammals. recorded in the country, 31 are rodents and shrews. Furthermore, they are also of significant importance in biological point of view, as they make up largely to the country's endemic faunal component. The endemic small mammals include six rodents and four shrews. Many of these endemic species are found in fragmented rainforests in southwestern Sri Lanka which are highly vulnerable to habitat destruction. As a result, many of these species have been categorised as threatened or endangered at national level. [7]

Endemic mammals

Most endemic mammals are small nocturnal mammals that are seen rarely. [8]

Low vulnerabilityThreatened
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Least concern
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Near threatened
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Vulnerable
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Endangered

Order Primate: primates

NameSpecies authorityRed List
Family Lorisidae: lorises
Red slender loris Loris tardigradus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
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[9]
Family Cercopithecidae: Old World monkeys
Toque macaque

Toque Macaques.jpg

Macaca sinica
(Linnaeus, 1771)
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[10]
Purple-faced langur Trachypithecus vetulus
(Erxleben, 1777)
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[11]

Order Rodentia: rodents

NameSpecies authorityRed List
Family Sciuridae: squirrels
Layard's palm squirrel Funambulus layardi
(Blyth, 1849)
Fl mammals vu.svg
[12]
Dusky palm squirrel Funambulus obscurus
(Waterhouse, 1838)
Fl mammals vu.svg
[13]
Family Muridae: Old World rats and mice
Mayor's mouse Mus mayori
(Thomas, 1915)
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[14]
Ceylon spiny mouse Mus fernandoni
(Phillips, 1932)
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[15]
Nillu rat Rattus montanus
Phillips, 1932
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[16]
Ohiya rat Srilankamys ohiensis
(Phillips, 1929)
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[17]
Nolthenius's long-tailed climbing mouse Vandeleuria nolthenii
Phillips, 1929
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[18]

Order Soricomorpha: shrews and moles

NameSpecies authorityRed List
Family Soricidae: shrews
Sri Lankan long-tailed shrew Crocidura miya
Phillips, 1929
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[19]
Sinharaja shrew Crocidura hikmiya
Meegaskumbura, Meegaskumbura, Manamendra-Arachchi, Pethiyagoda, & Schneider, 2007
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[20]
Pearson's long-clawed shrew Solisorex pearsoni
Thomas, 1924
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[21]
Jungle shrew Suncus zeylanicus
Phillips, 1928
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[22]
Sri Lankan shrew Suncus fellowesgordoni
Phillips, 1932
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[23]

Order Carnivora: carnivorans

NameSpecies authorityRed List
Family Viverridae: civets
Golden palm civet Paradoxurus zeylonensis
(Pallas, 1778)
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[24]
Golden wet zone palm civet Paradoxurus aureus
Cuvier, 1822
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[25]
Golden dry zone palm civet Paradoxurus stenocephalus
groves et al., 2009
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[26]
Sri Lanka brown palm civet Paradoxurus montanus
Kelaart, 1852
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[27]

Order Artiodactyla: even-toed ungulates

NameSpecies authorityRed List
Family Tragulidae: chevrotains
Sri Lankan spotted chevrotain Moschiola meminna
Erxleben, 1777
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[28]
Yellow-striped chevrotain Moschiola kathygre
Groves & Meijaard, 2005
Fl mammals lc.svg
[29]

Related Research Articles

The Ohiya rat, or Sri Lanka bi-colored rat, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is the only species in the genus Srilankamys. It is found only in Sri Lanka where it is known locally as ශ්‍රී ලංකා දෙපැහැ මීයා in Sinhala.

Noltheniuss long-tailed climbing mouse Species of rodent

Nolthenius's long-tailed climbing mouse, also known as Sri Lanka highland tree mouse or Podi-gas-miya, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. The species is endemic to the highlands of Sri Lanka. It is a nocturnal arboreal mouse, which is named after A. C. Tutein-Nolthenius, an amateur zoologist who collected the first specimens in 1929.

<i>Rasboroides vaterifloris</i> Species of fish

Rasboroides vaterifloris, known as the pearly rasbora, vateria flower rasbora or fire rasbora, is a species of freshwater cyprinid fish endemic to Sri Lanka. It can be found in the shallow waters of shaded, slow-flowing clear streams with a silt substrate. It also prefers areas with plentiful leaf debris. Its diet consists of detritus and terrestrial insects. This species can reach a length of 4 centimetres (1.6 in) TL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade.

Desperate shrew Species of mammal

The desperate shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Tanzania. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Flowers shrew Species of mammal

Flower's shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Egypt. Its natural habitat is arable land. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Sulawesi shrew Species of mammal

The Sulawesi shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to the central and northern provinces of Sulawesi in Indonesia. It is a fairly common species and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".

Sri Lankan long-tailed shrew Species of mammal

The Sri Lankan long-tailed shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Sri Lanka where it is known, in Sinhala, as ශ්‍රී ලංකා කුනු හික් මීයා. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Cameroonian shrew Species of mammal

The Cameroonian shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Cameroon. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Tanzanian shrew Species of mammal

The Tanzanian shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Tanzania. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Kelaarts long-clawed shrew Species of mammal

Kelaart's long-clawed shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is monotypic within the genus Feroculus. It is endemic to Sri Lanka and southern India. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, and swamps. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is known as පිරි හික් මීයා in Sinhala.

Pearsons long-clawed shrew Species of mammal

Pearson's long-clawed shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is monotypic within the genus Solisorex. It is endemic to Sri Lanka. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is known as ශ්‍රී ලංකා නියදිගු මා හික් මීයා in Sinhala.

Days shrew Species of mammal

Day's shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to India. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Sri Lankan shrew Species of mammal

The Sri Lankan shrew, also called Gordon's pygmy shrew, is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is endemic to Sri Lanka. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is known as හික් මීයා in Sinhala. It was named after the wife of A. C. Tutein-Nolthenius, Marjory née Fellowes-Gordon, who collected specimens of the shrew and provided them to Phillips.

Malayan pygmy shrew Species of mammal

The Malayan pygmy shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It can be found in Malaysia and Thailand. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests.

Asian highland shrew Species of mammal

The Asian highland shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in India and Sri Lanka. Its habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is known as ශ්‍රී ලංකා කදු හික් මීයා in Sinhala.

Remys pygmy shrew Species of mammal

Remy's pygmy shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, and Gabon. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Jungle shrew Species of mammal

The jungle shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae endemic to Sri Lanka. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

<i>Crocidura hikmiya</i> Species of mammal

Crocidura hikmiya is a species of shrew described from the rainforests of Sri Lanka, based on both morphological and molecular data. Its closest sister species is the Sri Lankan long-tailed shrew, another Sri Lankan crocidurine shrew restricted to the high-elevation habitats of the Central Highlands. C. hikmiya has a shorter tail than the Sri Lankan long-tailed shrew. Most of the other characteristics that distinguish the two species are osteological natured .

Mystus ankutta, also known as the Sri Lanka dwarf catfish or yellow dwarf catfish, is a species of catfish of the family Bagridae that is endemic to Sri Lanka. In the wild it is found in freshwater bodies from Kelani river to Nilwala river in Sri Lanka.

References

  1. 1 2 Weerakoon, D. K.; de A. Goonatilake, W. L. D. P. T. S. (2006). "Taxonomic Status of the Mammals of Sri Lanka". In Bambaradeniya, C.N.B. (ed.). Fauna of Sri Lanka: Status of Taxonomy, Research and Conservation (PDF). The World Conservation Union, Colombo, Sri Lanka & Government of Sri Lanka. pp. 216–231. ISBN   955-8177-51-2.
  2. ↑ The 2007 Red List of Threatened Fauna and Flora of Sri Lanka (PDF). Colombo, Sri Lanka: IUCN Sri Lanka and Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. 2007. ISBN   978-955-8177-63-1 . Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  3. ↑ "Sri Lanka lowland rain forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  4. ↑ "Conservation action and protected areas". biodiversityhotspots.org. Conservation International. Archived from the original on 2007-07-14. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  5. ↑ "Unique and threatened biodiversity". biodiversityhotspots.org. Conservation International. Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  6. ↑ Meegaskumbura, Suyama; Meegaskumbura, Madhava; Pethiyagoda, Rohan; Manamendra-Arachchi, Kelum & Schneider, Christopher J. (2007). "Crocidura hikmiya, a new shrew (Mammalia: Soricomorpha: Soricidae) from Sri Lanka" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1665: 19–30.
  7. 1 2 Wijesinghe, Mayuri R. (2006). "Ecological Traits of Endemic Small Mammals in Rainforests of Sri Lanka, and Their Implications for Conservation". In Bambaradeniya, C.N.B. (ed.). Fauna of Sri Lanka: Status of Taxonomy, Research and Conservation (PDF). The World Conservation Union, Colombo, Sri Lanka & Government of Sri Lanka. pp. 232–234. ISBN   955-8177-51-2.
  8. ↑ Wijeyeratne, Gehan de Silva (2008). "Endemic mammals". A photographic guide to Mammals of Sri Lanka (1st ed.). London: New Holland Publishers. p. 8. ISBN   978-1-84773-142-5.
  9. ↑ Gamage, S.N.; Nekaris, K.A.I.; Rudran, R. (2020). "Loris tardigradus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T12375A17970163. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T12375A17970163.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  10. ↑ Dittus, W.; Watson, A.C. (2020). "Macaca sinica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T12560A17951229. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T12560A17951229.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  11. ↑ Rudran, R.; Dittus, W.; Gamage, S.N.; Nekaris, K.A.I. (2020). "Semnopithecus vetulus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T22042A17959452. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T22042A17959452.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  12. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.L.D.P.T.S. (2016). "Funambulus layardi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T8700A22260033. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T8700A22260033.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  13. ↑ Middleton, K.; Dando, T. (2020). "Funambulus obscurus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T88814157A88814203. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T88814157A88814203.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  14. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.I.L.D.P.T.S.; Nameer, P.O. & Molur, S. (2008). "Mus mayori". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  15. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.L.D.P.T.S. (2019). "Mus fernandoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T13961A22404354. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T13961A22404354.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  16. ↑ de Alwis Goonatilake, S. (2019). "Rattus montanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T19348A22443205. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T19348A22443205.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  17. ↑ Dando, T.; Kennerley, R. (2019). "Srilankamys ohiensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T20688A22409849. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T20688A22409849.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  18. ↑ Dando, T. (2019). "Vandeleuria nolthenii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T22844A22430744. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22844A22430744.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  19. ↑ Dando, T.; Kennerley, R. (2019). "Crocidura miya". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T5608A22298694. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T5608A22298694.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  20. ↑ Meegaskumbura, S.; Meegaskumbura, M. (2008). "Crocidura hikmiya". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008: e.T136596A4316355. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T136596A4316355.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  21. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.I.L.D.P.T.S.; Nameer, P.O. & Molur, S. (2008). "Solisorex pearsoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  22. ↑ Dando, T.; Kennerley, R. (2019). "Suncus zeylanicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T21148A22289100. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T21148A22289100.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  23. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.L.D.P.T.S. (2020). "Suncus fellowesgordoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T21143A22289813. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T21143A22289813.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  24. ↑ Duckworth, J.W.; Mudappa, D.; Pethiyagoda, R.; Woolgar, J.; de Silva Wijeyeratne, G.; Hall, J. (2016). "Paradoxurus zeylonensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T41694A45218119. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T41694A45218119.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  25. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.I.L.D.P.T.S.; Nameer, P.O. & Molur, S. (2008). "Paradoxurus aureus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  26. ↑ Dando, T.; Kennerley, R. (2019). "Suncus zeylanicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T21148A22289100. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T21148A22289100.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  27. ↑ de A. Goonatilake, W.L.D.P.T.S. (2020). "Suncus fellowesgordoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T21143A22289813. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T21143A22289813.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  28. ↑ Duckworth, J.W.; Timmins, R. (2015). "Moschiola meminna". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T41779A73575223. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T41779A73575223.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  29. ↑ Duckworth, J.W.; Timmins, R. (2015). "Moschiola kathygre". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T136799A61979620. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T136799A61979620.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
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