The Mammals of Sri Lanka

Abstract

Yapa, A., and G. Ratnavira. 2013. The Mammals of Sri Lanka . Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka, Department of Zoology, University of Colombo, Colombo 3, Sri Lanka. 1,012 pp. ISBN: 978-955-8576-32-8, price (hard cover), Rs. 7500. The last comprehensive book on the mammals of Sri Lanka was compiled 8 decades ago when the island nation off the coast of India was known as the British colony of Ceylon (Phillips 1935). A sumptuously illustrated opus that updates and exceeds this earlier monograph was published last year with text exquisitely written by Asoka Yapa and color plates artistically painted by Gamini Ratnavira. I am sure that the original concept was probably a compact field guide but the meticulous attention to detail of the first author has created an encyclopedic volume on the current knowledge of mammals in Sri Lanka. But you will have to pour over this fact-packed book at home or in your office and not carry it into the field in your backpack because it is over 1,000 pages long and weighs almost 5kg. The liberal use of photography to capture species in their natural habitat on the island acts as a showcase to bring this charismatic group of animals back to the forefront of Sri Lankan wildlife. Many are stunning full-page images taken by local amateur photographers with an interest in biological conservation. The contents of the book start with a foreword by Rohan Pethiyagoda, founder of the Wildlife Heritage Trust and author of several papers on Sri Lankan biodiversity. He laments the decline of biological research since independence from British colonial rule in 1948. A resurgence in scientific research began with the start of a conservation movement to save the dwindling forest on the island in the 1980s, but there is still a need for “fresh exploration” because “the enlightenment is yet to come.” A section on “Enconiums” follows that sets out the authors’ inspiration for writing this book. They wanted to produce an updated version of Phillips’ “Mammals of Ceylon” that would do … Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen’s Park, Toronto, ON M5S 2C6, Canada; e-mail: burtonl{at}rom.on.ca.