Systematic status of Salea anamallayana triangularis

Roux (1928) described this subspecies which was relegated to the synonymy of Salea anamallayana by Smith (1935). It is, however, evident from Smith’s own writing that he made that decision after reading Roux’s description without actually examining the type. The type (NMB 9687), which is a female, has three triangular markings on the back instead of chevrons and a few smooth scales on flank (Roux 1928) (Figure 8). The sporadic presence of smooth scales on flank is a common character seen in S. anamallayana and the colour pattern of this species is so variable that emphasis on this feature cannot be seriously considered. We could not detect any qualitative character from the photographs which would help us to distinguish this specimen from S. anamallayana . Moreover, the type locality Marianshola in the Palni hills falls within the usual range of S. anamallayana. Hence, we can conclude that there is little justification in regarding NMB 9687 as a separate subspecies .