''Oligodon booliati'', also known as the Boo-Liat's kukri snake, is a species of snake of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Colubridae Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from , 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest fossil species of the family date back to the Late Eocene epoch, with earlier origins suspected. C ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the

Tioman Island Tioman Island () is , off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, more specifically off the east coast of Rompin District, Pahang, Malaysia. It is long and wide and has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung Tekek on the ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. The snake was named for Malaysian zoologist

Lim Boo Liat Lim Boo Liat (21 August 1926 – 11 July 2020) was a Malaysian zoologist whose pioneering work revealed the biological diversity of the Malay Peninsula and Borneo. He was a conservationist and a strong advocate for the preservation of the region ...

Habitat and conservation

''Oligodon booliati'' is a

fossorial A fossorial animal () is one that is adapted to digging and which lives primarily (but not solely) underground. Examples of fossorial vertebrates are Mole (animal), moles, badgers, naked mole-rats, meerkats, armadillos, wombats, and mole salamand ...

species that is found on leaf litter in lowland forest. Its range is restricted to the forested area of the Tioman Island, which is suffering from deforestation and could see the remaining forest disappearing in the near future.

References

booliati Snakes of Southeast Asia Reptiles of Malaysia Endemic fauna of Malaysia Critically endangered fauna of Asia Reptiles described in 2004 {{Colubrinae-stub