Fieldwork in northern Afghanistan recorded 14 species or species groups, including the venomous oxiana cobra, and raised the province’s known total to at least 20.
Before this work, Takhar Province was known to have two amphibian species and eight reptile species, with no recorded snakes. Researchers collected herpetological data from the province between 2020 and 2021 and identified 14 species and specimens representing species complexes, including the green toad and steppe agama complexes.
The survey added the first provincial records of six reptile species, including the Central Asian tortoise, Badakhshan agama, European glass lizard, Caspian bent-toed gecko, Schneider’s skink and desert monitor. It also produced Takhar’s first records of snakes: the Tatar sand boa, Ravergier’s racer, dice snake and the venomous oxiana cobra.
New species records
The researchers reported that Takhar Province is home to at least 20 amphibian and reptile species, compared with the 10 species previously known there. The survey recorded 14 species and specimens representing species complexes, including the Bufotes viridis complex and Trapelus agilis complex.
The work documented the first Takhar records of Testudo horsfieldii, Paralaudakia badakhshana, Pseudopus apodus, Tenuidactylus caspius, Eumeces schneideri and Varanus griseus. It also recorded snakes in the province for the first time: Eryx tataricus, Hemorrhois ravergieri, Natrix tessellata and the venomous Naja oxiana.
Evidence and limits
This is a field-survey account based on herpetological data collected in Takhar Province from 2020 to 2021, with species identified from observations and specimens. The abstract does not give the survey’s sampling effort, locations, or methods, so it is not possible to judge from the provided information how completely the province was sampled or whether additional species remain undocumented. The source is a repository article, and the supplied information does not state its peer-review status.
