- Dr. Ruchira Somaweera on the fascinating world of reptiles
Reptiles and amphibians are a wonderfully diverse group that, to be honest, get a very unfair rap. Yes, some of it may be reasonable: There are in fact some very dangerous reptiles, from venomous snakes like the Russel’s viper to bigger animals like crocodiles and the komodo dragon. But these reptiles are animals, and like all the other more likeable animals, they play vital parts in their ecosystems and are also in need of conservation, just like their more charismatic counterparts.
On 14 August, the WNPS Youth Wing, the youth-led arm of the Wildlife and Nature Preservation Society (WNPS), Sri Lanka’s oldest (and the world’s third oldest) nature protection society, will host their next Youth Skills Workshop, an online webinar aimed at building awareness and imparting skills on wildlife issues and skills. The Youth Skills Workshop will feature scientist and evolutionary biologist Dr. Ruchira Somaweera speaking on what he’s been doing in his field, studying reptile behaviour and ecology, the type of work he does in various parts of the world, and how his work has progressed over the years and works towards a better understanding of reptiles and conservation.
Dr. Somaweera is an evolutionary biologist with a broad research interest in how reptiles adapt to a changing world. Having completed his PhD at the University of Sydney, working on crocodiles, Dr. Somaweera worked as a Research Scientist at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia’s national science institute. He is currently the Principal Environmental Scientist at Stantec Australia and is a joint research fellow at the University of Western Australia.
His current research projects range from landscape-level impact studies in Western Australia, sea snake diversity in the Indian Ocean, and crocodile ecology in the remote Australian outback to reptiles of Komodo national park in Indonesia and snake bites in Sri Lanka. Dr. Somaweera’s work has led to many research publications and four books on herpetology. As a National Geographic Explorer and a scientist of the STEM Professionals in School programme of the Australian Government, Dr. Somaweera is actively involved in inspiring the general public and the next generation of biologists on wildlife and nature conservation.
Ahead of his Youth Skills Workshop, Brunch chatted with Dr. Somaweera for a bit more on what drew him into this unusual field of study, what conservation issues reptiles and amphibians face, and how we can work towards protecting them.
Growing up, Dr. Somaweera shared that he had always been very passionate about understanding things that a lot of people were scared of or didn’t focus on. While there is a fairly large Sri Lankan community interested in reptiles and amphibians now, this wasn’t always the case, and when Dr. Somaweera was growing up, the community was very small and there were only a couple of prohibitively expensive books available on reptiles. However, the then Principal of his alma mater, Trinity College, was a professor in zoology and someone who encouraged students to develop their interests and network, putting Dr. Somaweera in touch with academics and scientists from universities, allowing him to learn more about reptiles and amphibians that fascinated him. This led to a childhood passion to become a lifelong career.
A few favourite reptiles of Dr. Somaweera are the komodo dragon (which he spent six years studying), saltwater crocodiles (which he spent 12 years studying), and freshwater snakes (also known as mud snakes). His travels and research have also allowed him to see beautiful and rare reptiles like the beautiful (and highly venomous) Asian coral snake in Borneo, which he had the chance to observe after days of searching in the humid, leech-ridden Borneo Forest. One thing that makes the coral snake particularly memorable to Dr. Somaweera was that after all that searching, he came across this Asian coral snake while it was eating another type of coral snake (this type of Asian coral snake is a very specialised snake eater). Looking back, Dr. Somaweera shared: “After days of searching, to find not only such a beautiful specimen but to find a beautiful snake eating another was a massive hit.”
With regard to reptiles in a Sri Lankan context, Dr. Somaweera shared that one of the biggest misconceptions people have is that every reptile is dangerous – a misconception largely fueled by myths and traditions and made worse by the media. This combined with the lack of available information on reptiles and amphibians in ways and formats that can reach the population at large greatly contributes to a lack of understanding and increased fear.
“The biggest misconception is that reptiles are dangerous,” Dr. Somaweera said, adding: “Apart from what we generally know and have heard about as harmless, like the garandiya, we fear every snake. We fear everything and kill lots of reptiles for many reasons – mainly fear, but also to prevent damage like not getting bitten in the future, and also sometimes for revenge like if a certain type of snake has bitten someone in the family, you kill any snake of that kind you can find.”
This fear in and of itself is an issue when it comes to conservation. While Dr. Somaweera noted that in the bigger picture, the number of snakes killed by humans is not likely to drive one particular kind of snake to extinction, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t endangered reptiles and amphibians, including snakes, in Sri Lanka. “We have quite a few critically endangered species, especially some lizard species that have a very limited range,” he added.
The biggest conservation threat for reptiles and amphibians, like most wildlife, is habitat destruction. While many reptiles are able to adapt to changing habitats, not all of them can, and practices like chena cultivation – a particularly disruptive method of farming – pose a significant danger to reptile populations and ecosystems. There are also other threats like roadkill and smuggling, but Dr. Somaweera noted that while these are all serious concerns, in the bigger picture, they pale compared to the risk posed by habitat destruction.
Estimating reptile numbers is not frequently done by population counts, although this is one way of finding and evaluating species. There are, however, no exact numbers for reptile populations by Sri Lanka. All numbers are calculated by distribution, which is how many are found in a set area. Sri Lanka has some reptiles that are very limited to one area, be that specific forests or even just a specific mountaintop.
With conservation just as vital for reptiles as it is for other more conventional wildlife like leopards and elephants, Dr. Somaweera shared that what Sri Lanka as a society needs is a change of attitude when it comes to animals like reptiles, and people realising that it is time to let go of the damaging myths and traditions that perpetuate fear towards reptiles.
“I see a good trend in the youth at the moment,” Dr Somaweera said, adding: “Social media and channels like National Geographic have helped. What youth can do is bring about a scientific curiosity and an attitude change. We need to be curious about what science says and make genuine change. Things like protests and all that matter, but what we need primarily is a change of attitude.”
