Travancore Wolf snake spotted for first time in the state

VADODARA: An endemic snake species has been spotted for the first time in the state. Students from M S University's zoology department, who were on a field trip to Vansada National Park, spotted a Tranvancore Wolf snake in Dangs.
"Early this year we had gone for an academic meet in the Dang district. During our visit to the Vansda National Park, we spotted the Travancore Wolf snake when we were out at night," said Maitry Jani, student who is pursuing masters in zoology from MSU.
Jani added that though this snake species is commonly found in the western and eastern ghats but it was never seen in hilly regions of Gujarat. "We contacted an expert who has done research on snakes and he confirmed that this reptile species was spotted for the first time in the state," Jani told TOI.
Milan Sojitra, another student from the department who was present during the spotting said these species also have the ability to crawl vertically. "These snakes are non-venomous and are nocturnal. They get out of their habitat at night to hunt their prey. Travancore Wolf snakes are aggressive in nature and they generally prey on insects," added Sojitra.
The spotting of this snake in the state by the MSU students was also recently published by a European journal.
While gathering details of this species, the students learnt that the British had named the snake on the erstwhile princely state of Travancore in Kerala.