Wildlif Wildlife Survey of National P y of National Parks to Assess Reptilian Biodiv o Assess Reptilian Biodiversity, AJK

The class Reptilia belongs to phylum Chordata. This group forms a large community of the land vertebrates. However, they remain relatively under-examined. Roll et al. (2017) studied the global distribution of more than 10,000 reptiles. Nearly194 reptilian species have been reported from Pakistan (WWF, n.d.). Five protected parks were studied from February 2008 to May 2010. Dhirkot Nature Reserve (DNR), Banjosa Nature Reserve (BNR), Tolipir National Park (TNP), Pir Chanasi National Park (PCNP) and Pir Lasura National Park (PLNP) were considered. Fifteen species of reptiles were observed in TNP. Ten species of reptiles were recorded from PCNP. Ten species of reptiles were confirmed from DNR, including 6 species of snakes. The present study could collect the evidence on the presence of 14 reptile species distributed under different habitat conditions of BGR. The total number of species of reptiles recorded in PLNP during the study was 24.