Distributional patterns of amphibians and reptiles in Ghandruk, Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

In May and October 2017, we assessed the distribution and diversity of herpetofauna in the Ghandruk region of the Annapurna Conservation Area. Using the Visual Encounter Survey (VES) protocol on 11 randomly selected transects, we recorded 662 individuals of 25 herpetofaunal species (12 amphibians and 13 reptiles). Species richness and abundance declined with increases in elevation but only the correlation between elevation and abundance was significant. Neither amphibians nor reptiles were uniformly distributed among different habitats, and species richness of both amphibians and reptiles varied significantly among habitat types. The greatest amphibian species richness was in wetlands, whereas that of reptiles was highest in forests.