Prodromus Faunae Zeylanicae: A Facsimile Reprint of the 1852 and 1854 texts

First published in 1853, this introduction to the fauna of Sri Lanka presents the first attempt to synthesise much of what was then known of the natural history of the island’s vertebrate fauna, based both on his own original research and that of other naturalists such as Edgar Layard and Edward Blyth. This edition is a full reproduction of the original text of Prodromus faunae zeylanicae and the so-called second volume of the work issued in parts from 1984 onwards. Includes a biographical introduction by Rohan Pethiyagoda and Kelum Manamendra-Arachchi. Several of Kelaart’s original drawings in the collections of the Linnean Society of London and the Hancock Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne, are reproduced in colour.