Water Snow Flat (Tagiades litigiosa)

English: Water Snow Flat
Binomial: Tagiades litigiosa

Water Snow Flat is a butterfly belongs to Hesperiidae family. It lives in Asian countries including Sri Lanka. Above photograph was taken at Eastern Sinharaja.

Golden shrub frog (Pseudophilautus auratus)

English: Golden shrub frog
Binomial: Pseudophilautus auratus
Sinhala: රන්වන් පඳුරු මැඩියා [Ranwan panduru madiya]

Pseudophilautus auratus is an endemic species shrub frogs restricted to the wet zone forests of Sri Lanka. It is considered to be rare and commonly seen in higher elevations (513-1270m) of Sinharaja world heritage site, such as Morningside and Sooriyakanda forest reserves. Color of the body is highly variable and can be seen in yellow, pink or brownish pink. Latin species name “auratus” is an allusion to the golden skin color. Breeding of this amphibian does not depend on water and it takes place by direct development. IUCN Red List status of this frog is “Endangered”. Deforestation and agricultural activities are said to be the main threats.

References:

• Manamendra-Arachchi, K., and Pethiyagoda, R. (2005). ''The Sri Lankan shrub-frogs of the genus Philautus Gistel, 1848 (Ranidae: Rhacophorinae), with description of 27 new species.'' Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, Supplement 12, 163-303. 
• The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(tm) 2015-4 - http://www.iucnredlist.org 
• Manamendra-Arachchi, K. & R. Pethiyagoda (2006): Sri Lankan amphibians [in Sinhala]. – WHT Publications, Colombo.

Lemon pansy (Junonia lemonias)

English: Lemon pansy
Binomial: Junonia lemonias

Lemon pansy is a widely distributed butterfly in South Asian region including Sri Lanka. Above was photographed at Yala national park in June, 2015. It is more common in the dry zone compared to the wet zone.

Sri Lanka red crab (Ceylonthelphusa sanguinea)

English: Sri Lanka red crab
Binomial: Ceylonthelphusa sanguinea
Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා රතු කකුළුවා[Sri Lanka rathu kakuluwa]

Sri Lanka red crab is an endemic species of freshwater crabs found in Knuckles Range. Its habitats are small streams and waterfalls in the misty mountains of the Knuckles region. Above photographed one was found in a small stream at about 11 a.m in November, 2015. It is observed that they hide inside rock crevices after some time. In the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, this crab has been categorized as "Critically endangered" due to its very limited distribution.

Invasive species, rainwater acidification, climate change, and all other human activities that pollute aquatic environment systems are the threats for the existence of this species.

Information obtained from: Mr. M. M. Bahir. 
Reference: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(tm) 2015-4 - http://www.iucnredlist.org

Marbled rock frog (Nannophrys marmorata)

English: Marbled rock frog / Kirtisinghe's rock frog
Binomial: Nannophrys marmorata
Sinhala: දුම්බර ගල්පර දිය මැඩියා [Dumbara galpara diya madiya]

Marbled rock frog is an endemic species of frogs found in Knuckles mountain range. It is one of two species of frogs in Sri Lanka which belong to genus Nannophrys. This species is a semi-aquatic and lives in rock crevices and on wet rocks. Flat shaped body and the color pattern of the skin are adaptions for the living habitat. Even the behavior is similar to N. ceylonensis, Nannophrys marmorata has been adopted to live with dry, changing weather conditions. But other relative of the same genus, N. ceylonensis, is mostly found in wet rocky areas of covered wet zone forests.

In the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, this frog is categorized as "Critically endangered" due to its limited distribution. Human activities such as tourism and agricultural activities are considered to be the main threats for the species.

References:

• Manamendra-Arachchi, K. & R. Pethiyagoda (2006): Sri Lankan amphibians [in Sinhala]. – WHT Publications, Colombo.
• The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(tm) 2015-4 - http://www.iucnredlist.org

Plain tiger (Danaus chrysippus)

English: Plain tiger
Binomial: Danaus chrysippus

Plain tiger is a widely distributed butterfly in Asian and African countries. It is a slow flier due to the less threat from predators. This butterfly is ignored by predators due to the unpalatable alkaloids contaminated in the body. Therefore some other species of butterflies such as Indian fritillary, mimic the characteristics of Plain tiger. In Sri Lanka, it is more common in dry zone compared to the wet zone. Above photographs were taken at Yala national park in June, 2015.

Asian Pintail (Acisoma panorpoides)

English: Asian Pintail
Binomial: Acisoma panorpoides

Asian Pintail is a widely distributed dragonfly in many parts of the world including Sri Lanka. It is a weak flier and can be seen close to vegetation in water streams and reservoirs. Colour of the male is light blue and the observed female was yellowish. Above photographed one was found at Makandawa rain forest, Kithulgala in February, 2016.

Reference: Dragonflies of Sri Lanka - Matjaž Bedjaniè, Karen Conniff, Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne