Wipula Yapa

University of Colombo · Department of Zoology

The genus Miniopterus is a monophyletic assemblage of many species characterized by remarkably conservative morphology. The number of recognized species has more than doubled over the last two decades, mainly with newly recognized Afrotropical and Malagasy species. A molecular phylogenetic analysis based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) reve...

Sri Lanka is a tropical island located in the Indian subcontinent and is known to support at least 31 species of bats representing eight families (Yapa, 2017). Research in tropical ecosystems demonstrates the importance of bats as predators in biological control of arthropod pests in agriculture (Boyles et al., 2011). Despite the important role of...

Bats spend over half of their lives in day roosts, where key life events transpire. Therefore the availability and selection of roosts is important to bats everywhere, and may limit their ability to exploit agricultural landscapes like tea plantations. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the day roosts used by different bat species in tea pl...

Sri Lanka is an island lying in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Bengal bay and harbours rich diversity of bats comprising 31 species. The only species of bent-winged bat (Miniopteridae) recorded from Sri Lanka has been identified as Miniopterus fuliginosus, but this name is used with caution. Distribution of this species is documented inaccurately a...

Morphometric characterization of buffalo skulls in Sri Lanka

Molecular phylogeny of Sri Lankan wild buffaloes based on genetic variability of mitochondrial cytochrome b gene

Sri Lanka is known to support 31 species of bats representing 8 families. The family Hipposideridae includes five species in Sri Lanka, currently identified as Hipposideros speoris, Hipposideros ater, Hipposideros fulvus, Hipposideros galeritus, and Hipposideros lankadiva. Detailed descriptions of echolocation calls of most bat species in Sri Lanka...

Kerivoula picta (Pallas, 1767) is one of most colorful Vespertilionid bat recorded in South and South-east Asian countries. It is a common yet an elusive bat, roosting among foliage, in small numbers. Although analysis of Echolocation calls of bats have become an important parameter in taxonomy, foraging and roosting behavior of bats, echolocation...

Bats are promising candidates for studying morphometric and acoustic responses to geographical isolation. The present study tried to understand the cranial variation and acoustic differences in Hipposideros lankadiva, an endemic species to the Indian subcontinent. The specimens from India are referable to H. l. indus and are relatively small in siz...

The montane forest is a unique eco-region found 900 m above the sea level in the central highlands of Sri Lanka. Owing to their rich biodiversity, this region is considered as a hotspot for flora and fauna and is of global importance. Typically, there is a relatively small band of altitude in which the atmospheric environment is suitable for montan...

Due to the exponential growth of human population, natural forests are being steadily replaced by areas devoted to agriculture. It is estimated that forty percent of our planet's terrestrial area is allocated to agriculture, causing devastating damage to wildlife. However, on the positive side, the diverse nature of agro-ecosystems offers opportuni...

The global success, species richness and ability of bats to exploit diverse niches are mostly due to their capacity for powered flight and echolocation. Basic information on the abundance of different bat species, their distribution and habitat requirements can be gathered from their echolocation calls, if species specific echolocation calls can be...

Large natural caves are considered as unique ecosystems. Owing to their specific physiochemical conditions, they sustain a rich and unique assemblage of invertebrates and microbes. The present study reports for the first time in Sri Lanka, invertebrate fauna of a cave environment and the environmental parameters associated with their diversity. The...

Caves are unique ecosystems that provide habitats for rare and unique vertebrates, invertebrates as well as micro fauna. Although several studies have described cave dwelling vertebrates, macro-invertebrate fauna of the caves in Sri Lanka have been rarely studied. As the resultant species composition and abundance depend on the method adopted in su...

Bats are the second most diverse order of mammals by species richness, but many bat species have experienced severe population declines. Extensive research on species richness and habitat use of individual species are essential to prioritise management and conservation of bats. Detection of bat species using conventional capture surveys is costly,...

In this paper we report the discovery of a colony of Wrinkle-lipped Free-tailed Bat Chaerephon plicatus for the first time in Sri Lanka, and a record of this species after a lapse of 20 years. C. plicatus has been recorded twice previously, in 1935 and 1997, but a roosting colony has not been recorded before. In May 2016, a colony containing about...

In this paper we report the discovery of a colony of Wrinkle-lipped Free-tailed Bat Chaerephon plicatus for the first time in Sri Lanka, and a record of this species after a lapse of 20 years. C. plicatus has been recorded twice previously, in 1935 and 1997, but a roosting colony has not been recorded before. In May 2016, a colony containing about...

Ecological immunology focuses on describing and explaining the natural variation in immune functions with respect to biotic and abiotic factors in the environment. This study examined the relationships among the health status, parasite load and immune defences of animals, using the Fulvous fruit bat (Rousettus leschenaulti), a megachiropteran found...

This study represents the first effort to obtain a comprehensive library of adult Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) vocalizations recorded in a variety of behavioural contexts. In Phase I of the study, a gerbil colony was introduced into a seminatural enclosure and allowed to breed naturally over an observation period of 19 months. During th...

Bats modify the structure and emission pattern of their calls to cope with the functional constraints of a given echolocation situation. As a consequence, the flexibility in sonar call use affects the potential niche use of a species. The present paper addresses call use in Megaderma lyra, a species with a short, broadband multiharmonic basic call,...

Key Words: Microchiroptera; Megachiroptera; inflight; outflight; cave dwelling; light intensityDOI: 10.4038/josuk.v2i0.2745J Sci.Univ.Kelaniya 2 (2005): 41-62

Keywords: Cynopterus; Chiroptera; day roosts; tents; Corypha umbraculiferaDOI: 10.4038/josuk.v1i0.2752J Sci.Univ.Kelaniya 1 (2003): 15-21

Key words: haematology; microchiroptera; Miniopterus schreibersii; Taphozous melanopogon; Hipposideros lankadivaDOI: 10.4038/josuk.v2i0.2744J Sci.Univ.Kelaniya 2 (2005): 27-40

This study examined the blood glucose lowering potential of the aqueous stem bark extract (ABE) of Sri Lankan endemic plant-Kokoona zeylanica (Family: Celestraceae). This was tested in normoglycaemic mice using three oral doses (1800, 2500 and 3000 mg/kg of body weight). The results show a moderate but dose dependant acute hypoglycaemic activity wi...

Use of vocal parameters of the Indian Palm squirrels, (Funambulus palmarum) based on Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients and Artificial Neural Networks, to identify different call types is discussed in this paper. Squirrel Calls were recorded from free ranging individuals in a home garden in Homagama, Sri Lanka, (Geographical coordinates of 6° 50'...