Riopa albopunctata Gray, 1846

Hakim, Jonathan, Trageser, Scott J., Ghose, Animesh, Rashid, Sheikh Muhammad Abdur & Rahman, Shahriar Caesar, 2020, Amphibians and reptiles from Lawachara National Park in Bangladesh, Check List 16 (5), pp. 1239-1268 : 1252

Riopa albopunctata Gray, 1846

Figure 6B

Material examined. BANGLADESH • 1, 12.7 cm adult; Sylhet Division, Moulvibazar District, Kamal- ganj Upazila, LNP, Srimangal-Bhanugach Road border- ing Fulbari Tea Estate ; 24°19.78′N, 091°47.58′E; 15 Jun. 2015; 21:50; photo voucher ZRC ( IMG) 2.363 .

Identification. Riopa albopunctata is an extremely slen- der, small-limbed skink with a light brown dorsum bearing narrow, dark, broken lines and dark sides with white speckling but fading to brown towards tail. Hatchlings were a more uniformly deep brown with a maroon tail. This species is differentiated from other Riopa species by its pattern and gestalt, with the identification con- firmed by Aniruddha Dutta and Stephen Mahony (pers. comm.).

Habitat. We rarely found this predominantly fossorial skink in LNP. One specimen was on a road at night near a tea plantation and three adults were found by turning concrete and wood near human habitations in village habitat.

Remarks. Under a large piece of concrete where an adult R. albopunctata (SVL 56 mm, TL 128 mm) had previously been spotted, three eggs with dimensions of 11.6 ×

7.2 mm were found on 27 June 2015. The eggs lay on top of bare ground directly under the concrete. These eggs were kept in soil in a plastic jar and hatched on 5 July 2015; hatchlings had snout-vent length of 22.4–23.5 mm and total length of 46.4–48.0 mm.