Long-snouted vine snake

Prelims – Bio-diversity.

Mains (GS III) – Conservation.

Why in News?

A rare long-snouted vine snake has been rediscovered in the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh.

It is a species of long-snouted arboreal and diurnal snake.
Scientific Name - Ahaetulla longirostris.
- It is a member of the A. fusca clade and as a sister the species to A. laudankia.
Previously, Ahaetulla longirostris had only been recorded once in Bihar and Odisha in 2024.
Appearance – It can be bright green or orange brown. They typically have orange bellies.
Habitat - These snakes live in forests as well as human-dominated areas like cities.
Distribution - Commonly found in Southeast Asia.
Size - Can reach a length of 4-feet.
Characteristics - It has horizontal, keyhole-shaped pupils, which enhances their binocular vision, aiding them in hunting and navigating their arboreal environment.
It is mildly poisonous, not very dangerous for humans.
It is ovoviviparous, meaning it gives birth to live young after incubating eggs inside the female's body.
Distinction - The new species differs from its congeners in bearing an elongate rostral appendage, green or ochre dorsum, orange-brown belly, and moderately keeled vertebral dorsal scale row.

Dudhwa Tiger Reserve

Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, a protected area in Uttar Pradesh's Terai region.
It encompasses Dudhwa National Park, Kishanpur Wildlife Sanctuary, and Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary.
Established in - 1988.
Rivers
- The Sharda River flows by the Kishanpur WL Sanctuary,
- The Geruwa River flows through the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary and
- The Suheli and Mohana streams flow in the Dudhwa National Park, all of which are tributaries of the Ghagra River.
The reserve is home to some of the last remaining oxbow lakes, along with marshy grasslands, dry riverine grasslands, and dense, moist deciduous sal woodlands.
It is a biodiversity hotspot, where various flora and fauna are interconnected through food chains and food webs across different niches.
Katarniaghat now has the highest number of tigers in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve.