Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India
Abstract Delhi, the capital city of India is, highly urbanized and surrounded by remnant forest, farms, ridges, and other green areas experience regular snake encounters in and around residential, institutional, and industrial areas. A total of 41 months of sampling from January 2019 to May 2022 was...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2024-03-01
|
| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-50373-0 |
| _version_ | 1827321478776881152 |
|---|---|
| author | Gaurav Barhadiya Jayaditya Purkayastha Ashis Kumar Saha Chirashree Ghosh |
| author_facet | Gaurav Barhadiya Jayaditya Purkayastha Ashis Kumar Saha Chirashree Ghosh |
| author_sort | Gaurav Barhadiya |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Delhi, the capital city of India is, highly urbanized and surrounded by remnant forest, farms, ridges, and other green areas experience regular snake encounters in and around residential, institutional, and industrial areas. A total of 41 months of sampling from January 2019 to May 2022 was conducted wherein we, studied the snake assemblage in Delhi to determine the species composition, encounter frequency, seasonal activity patterns, and probable encounter sites in an urban setup. We documented 372 individuals belonging to 15 species from seven families out of 23 species found in Delhi. Snakes were found inside forests, public parks, homes, drain networks, streets, office buildings, and even in school-college buildings. The most recorded species being Ptyas mucosa (37.37%, n = 139), Naja naja (19.62%, n = 73), and Lycodon aulicus (13.44%, n = 50). The highest numbers of incidents were reported in the month of July (22.04%, n = 82) and August (19.89%, n = 74) during the peak monsoon season, for identifying high encounter sites, we used a geostatistical modeling tool, Ordinary kriging to identify places having more snake occurrences. We further used a statistical spatial method called average nearest neighbor distance to detect the pattern distribution of snake species. Spatial interpolation done through Ordinary kriging highlighted two areas having concentrated snake encounters. The results of the average nearest neighbor distance analysis showed three species having clustered and two species having dispersed distribution. The incidence of snake encounters was found to be highly seasonal and appeared to be associated mainly with monthly rainfall, temperature, and humidity. The findings of this study on snakes’ distribution patterns provide valuable insights into the conservation of these species. Understanding their habitat preferences and spatial distribution is crucial for the implementation of effective conservation strategies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:06:52Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-324c65fe4243471faa2a31bc5e0b148b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:06:52Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-324c65fe4243471faa2a31bc5e0b148b2024-03-10T12:09:51ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-03-0114111110.1038/s41598-023-50373-0Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, IndiaGaurav Barhadiya0Jayaditya Purkayastha1Ashis Kumar Saha2Chirashree Ghosh3Ramanujan College, University of DelhiHelp EarthDepartment of Geography, University of DelhiDepartment of Environmental Studies, University of DelhiAbstract Delhi, the capital city of India is, highly urbanized and surrounded by remnant forest, farms, ridges, and other green areas experience regular snake encounters in and around residential, institutional, and industrial areas. A total of 41 months of sampling from January 2019 to May 2022 was conducted wherein we, studied the snake assemblage in Delhi to determine the species composition, encounter frequency, seasonal activity patterns, and probable encounter sites in an urban setup. We documented 372 individuals belonging to 15 species from seven families out of 23 species found in Delhi. Snakes were found inside forests, public parks, homes, drain networks, streets, office buildings, and even in school-college buildings. The most recorded species being Ptyas mucosa (37.37%, n = 139), Naja naja (19.62%, n = 73), and Lycodon aulicus (13.44%, n = 50). The highest numbers of incidents were reported in the month of July (22.04%, n = 82) and August (19.89%, n = 74) during the peak monsoon season, for identifying high encounter sites, we used a geostatistical modeling tool, Ordinary kriging to identify places having more snake occurrences. We further used a statistical spatial method called average nearest neighbor distance to detect the pattern distribution of snake species. Spatial interpolation done through Ordinary kriging highlighted two areas having concentrated snake encounters. The results of the average nearest neighbor distance analysis showed three species having clustered and two species having dispersed distribution. The incidence of snake encounters was found to be highly seasonal and appeared to be associated mainly with monthly rainfall, temperature, and humidity. The findings of this study on snakes’ distribution patterns provide valuable insights into the conservation of these species. Understanding their habitat preferences and spatial distribution is crucial for the implementation of effective conservation strategies.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-50373-0 |
| spellingShingle | Gaurav Barhadiya Jayaditya Purkayastha Ashis Kumar Saha Chirashree Ghosh Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India Scientific Reports |
| title | Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India |
| title_full | Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India |
| title_fullStr | Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India |
| title_full_unstemmed | Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India |
| title_short | Spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban Delhi, India |
| title_sort | spatial and temporal assessment of snake encounters in urban delhi india |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-50373-0 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gauravbarhadiya spatialandtemporalassessmentofsnakeencountersinurbandelhiindia AT jayadityapurkayastha spatialandtemporalassessmentofsnakeencountersinurbandelhiindia AT ashiskumarsaha spatialandtemporalassessmentofsnakeencountersinurbandelhiindia AT chirashreeghosh spatialandtemporalassessmentofsnakeencountersinurbandelhiindia |