Sabaragamuwa Shieldtail

Rhinophis martin, Martin's shieldtail, is a burrowing uropeltid described in 2024 from the Rakwana Massif in Sri Lanka's Sabaragamuwa Province, with the holotype from Hayes/Gongala. It is restricted to the south-eastern part of the massif at 750 to at least 820 m, and one specimen was unearthed by mechanical diggers clearing tea plantation. In life it is golden yellow above with blackish crossbars and blackish below, with whitish marks on the sides of the tail. It has 17 dorsal scale rows at midbody, 167 to 189 ventral scales, and a large domed tail shield with small uniform spines (Gower and colleagues 2024).

It is named for Martin Wijesinghe (1939–2021), for his advocacy for the forests of south-western Sri Lanka. Some 33 specimens are known. It was described after the 2012 national list, so no national status is given here.