| Uraeotyphlus oommeni | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
 Data Deficient (IUCN 3.1) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Gymnophiona |
| Clade: | Apoda |
| Family: | Ichthyophiidae |
| Genus: | Uraeotyphlus |
| Species: | U. oommeni |
| Binomial name | |
| Uraeotyphlus oommeni Gower and Wilkinson [fr], 2007 | |
Uraeotyphlus oommeni, sometimes known as the Oommen's caecilian, Oommen's Uraeotyphlus, or Bonnacord caecilian, is a species of caecilian in the family Ichthyophiidae. Within Uraeotyphlus, it belongs to the U. malabaricus group showing no obvious external differentiation between primary and higher-order annuli. This species is endemic to the Western Ghats and only known from its type locality, Bonaccord, Thiruvananthapuram district, southern Kerala. Very little is known about this species known only from a single specimen collected from an imprecise location.
Etymology
The specific name oommeni honours Oommen V. Oommen, professor of zoology at the University of Kerala.
Description
The holotype is a mature female measuring 164 mm (6.5 in) in total length and 7 mm (0.3 in) wide at mid-body. There are 207 (left side) and 214 (right side) annuli, without clear external differentiation between primary and higher-order annuli. The body is strongly dorsoventrally compressed. The head is small and pointed. The eyes are clearly visible. The preserved specimen has lilac-brown anterior part of the body, becoming paler towards the head. The darker dorsal colouration grades through lighter brown to cream-tan ventrally.
Habitat and conservation
The precise location where this species was collected on the Bonaccord estate in 1987 is unknown. It is probably similar to other members of the genus, which are oviparous, lay terrestrial eggs, and are subterranean as adults. Threats to this species are unknown.
References
- ^ David Gower, Mark Wilkinson (2008). "Uraeotyphlus oommeni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2008: e.T135990A4223204. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T135990A4223204.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ Gower, David J. & Wilkinson, Mark (2007). "Species groups in the Indian caecilian genus Uraeotyphlus Peters (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Uraeotyphlidae), with the description of a new species" (PDF). Herpetologica. 63 (3): 401–410. doi:10.1655/0018-0831(2007)63[401:SGITIC]2.0.CO;2. JSTOR 4497972. S2CID 85588420.
- ^ Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Uraeotyphlus oommeni Gower and Wilkinson, 2007". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- "Uraeotyphlus oommeni Bonnacord Caecilian". Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- "Ichthyophiidae". AmphibiaWeb. University of California, Berkeley. 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael & Grayson, Michael (2013). The Eponym Dictionary of Amphibians. Pelagic Publishing. p. 158. ISBN 978-1-907807-42-8.
| Taxon identifiers | |
|---|---|
| Uraeotyphlus oommeni | |