RESEARCHING THE SPECIES COMPOSITION AND BUILDING A COLLECTION OF SNAKES IN DONG THAP PROVINCE

Abstract

The construction of the specimens used for the teaching process is significant; particularly in teaching biology, the applications of real samples will contribute to improving the quality of teaching. From the above reasons, we have conducted a study on species composition and built a collection of snakes in Dong Thap province. The process of field research was conducted from 2008 to 2012, and the selected sampling areas were in the districts in Dong Thap province. Research results listed 32 species of snakes belonging to 21 genera and 7 families, distributed in Dong Thap province. There are 13 genera (57.14% of the total) in the Colubridae family, 3 genera (14.28% of the total) in the Elapidae family and 1(4.7% of the total) for each of the rest. From the specimens collected in the wild, we have processed, shaped and built a collection of the specimens exhibited in the animal laboratory, Faculty of Biology, Dong Thap University. The collection of snakes has been built for the purpose of teaching, researching as well as contributing to the construction of the biological museum.