Pattipola Caecilian

The Pattipola Caecilian is a legless amphibian species that is endemic to Sri Lanka and is typically found in the south-central mountains up to elevations of 1900 meters. It inhabits a wide range of moist environments including evergreen forests, tea and rubber plantations, paddy fields, home gardens, wetlands and even cattle pastures. Being fossorial in nature it spends most of its time hidden in wet leaf litter moist soil or beneath rocks and logs. This species is usually seen above ground during nights with heavy rainfall. It is often confused with earthworms or snakes but can be identified by features such as a distinct head visible nostrils sub-dermal eyes and small tentacles near the snout.

The species grows to around 235 mm in length and lacks the yellow side stripe seen in other Sri Lankan caecilians. It mainly feeds on earthworms and insect larvae found underground. Sri Lanka is home to three described Ichthyophis species and a possible fourth that is yet to be formally identified. The Pattipola Caecilian can be distinguished from the Ceylon Caecilian (Ichthyophis glutinosus) which has a yellow lateral line and from the Lesser Yellow Banded Caecilian (Ichthyophis pseudangularis) by its longer body and higher number of annuli. A fourth caecilian species similar in appearance to I. glutinosus but genetically closer to I. orthoplicatus may also exist in the region.