Boiga cyanea (Duméril et al., 1854)

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 : 1257

Boiga cyanea (Duméril et al., 1854)

Figure 8D

Material examined. BANGLADESH • 1 juvenile; Syl- het Division, Moulvibazar District , Kamalganj Upazila, LNP, pond south of Janki Chora; 24°18.76′N, 091°46.88′E; 12 Jun. 2014; 20:43; photo voucher ZRC ( IMG) 2.341 .

Identification. A long, slender cat snake with large head, vertical pupil, eight supralabials, and 21 midbody scale rows. One specimen in the park had 253 ventral scales and 125 subcaudals. This is the only Boiga species in the region with a green dorsal color in adults and rust color with green head in juveniles ( Kabir et al. 2009).

Habitat. Boiga cyanea was one of the most regularly seen snakes during nocturnal visual surveys of mature forest. It was usually found moving at 1–2 m above the ground in dense vegetation, although occasionally it was forced to the ground during heavy rains. No specimens were found outside of mature forest.

Remarks. In contrast to the frequency with which we encountered B. cyanea in our visual surveys, this species was only found once in 14 months in the road-kill survey. This disparity may be due to its affinity for dense forest and reluctance to leave vegetation to cross roads, or possibly faster speeds in crossing roads may minimize casualties. JH observed a large adult that had been killed during the day by local villagers while expanding their betel vine plantation into mature forest.