An ecological analysis of snakes captured by C.J.P. Ionides in eastern Africa in the mid-1900s.

ABSTRACT: Historical data can clarify ecological attributes of fauna in sites that have subsequently been altered by anthropogenic activities. We used the 1960s notebooks of pioneering East African naturalist C.J.P. Ionides to extract quantitative information on captures of 484 snakes of five species (rhinoceros vipers Bitis nasicornis, black mambas Dendroaspis polylepis, Jameson's mambas D. jamesoni, water cobras Naja annulata, and eastern forest cobras N. subfulva). High capture rates suggest high abundances of all species. The relative numbers of each species collected changed over the years and differed seasonally, reflecting targeting by Ionides. Sex ratios and age-class distributions differed among species and were affected by factors such as month of collection and time of day. Habitat use wa

SUBMITTER: Shine R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7083826 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature