Naja oxiana (Eichwald, 1831)

Figs 9, 10G

Takhar record.

Bay Yawa (Qizilqiya), 37.4267°N, 69.7085°E, 736 m a. s. l., 1 September 2019, observed on the sandy road during the evening and in the morning next day.

Distribution in Afghanistan.

According to Wagner et al. (2016), this species is known from different parts of the country, mostly from the northern and south-eastern Provinces, i.e. Badghis, Herat, Kabul, Kunduz, Logar and Nangarhar (Fig. 9). It represents 18% of all provinces.

Chorotype.

Iranian + Turanian + Palearctic-Oriental transition zone.

Remarks.

This is the first record of this species from Takhar Province. Kazemi et al. (2021) compared the genetic data of populations from northern Afghanistan with those from Iran and Turkmenistan and highlighted a shallow pattern of genetic variability suggesting ecological plasticity (the species is inhabiting variety of habitats) connected with rapid colonisation events in the past. However, populations south of the Hindu Kush Mountains were not studied and, due to this significant geographic barrier, we can expect the deeper genetic structure of the species.