BARKUDIA LIMBLESS SKINK SIGHTED AT KAMBALAKONDA WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

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Context

• The first-ever sighting of Barkudia limbless skink (Barkudiamelanostica), a small reptile, renowned for its unique limbless body and extraordinary adaptation, which has long eluded scientific observation, has been reported at the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary 

About The Barkudia limbless skink

• It is fossorial in nature and is characterised by its elongated body, muddy brown colouration, and absence of limbs, a unique adaptation to its environment.
• Barkudia insularis commonly known as the Madras spotted skink is a critically endangered limbless skink which was described in 1917 by Nelson Annandale and rediscovered in the wild in 2003.
• It was previously believed to be found only in the mangrove habitats near Barkuda Island in Chilka Lake, Odisha, India.
• Later observations in adjoining parts of Odisha indicate a larger range within the state.
• The lizard looks like a large earthworm and lives in the subsoil and probably feeds on small arthropods.
• Only four reports of the species have been made since its description, all within Odisha: observations in 1917 and 2003 at Barkuda Island in Chilka Lake, a 1979 observation in Nandankanan Zoological Park, and a 2022 observation made near the vicinity of Buguda.

About The Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary

• The Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary is a forest located near Visakhapatnam.
• It has been under the control of Andhra Pradesh Forest Department since 10 March 1970.
• It was named after the local hillock Kambalakonda. Named after the local hillock " Kambalakonda " acting as a green lung for citizens of Vizianagaram, is this large and sprawling sanctuary.
• It is a dry evergreen forest mixed with scrub and meadows and covers an area of 70.70 square kilometers.
• The indicator species is the Indian leopard.

Flora

• There is diverse flora and fauna in this sanctuary representing the Eastern Ghats. Floral diversity is high.
• The floral diversity is wonderful with plants like Tectona grandis, Randia dumetorum, Grewaia tiliaefolia, Abrus precatorius, etc

Fauna

• The invertebrate fauna too is wonderful with insects, arachnids, etc.
• Reptilian fauna is represented by Russell viper, Common Cobra, Chameleon, etc. Avifauna includes Paradise flycatcher, Tree pie, Quails, Partridges, etc.
• The mammalian fauna in the Sanctuary includes mammals like Leopard, Barking Deer, Jackal, etc.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/barkudia-limbless-skink-sighted-at-kambalakonda-wildlife-sanctuary-in-visakhapatnam/article66882242.ece/amp/