A Delhi University student has found four new species of burrowing frogs from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot.
A student of professor SD Biju, who is known as the frogman of India, Sonali Garg, made the discovery after five years of research.
Unlike other members of the genus, the new frogs have burrowing skills.
The new findings will help in saving these frogs as now it is clear that five different species with different conservation requirements exist.
The frogs were confirmed as new species in a DU lab by using an integrated taxonomic approach that included DNA studies, detailed morphological comparisons and bioacoustics.
The study highlights a fairly common group of frogs that is usually found closer to human habitations but still not documented properly .
More extensive studies are required to scientifically identify and describe the Western Ghats frogs that are already facing extinction threats," said Garg.
The four species are:- Manoharan's burrowing frog, found in Agasthyamala Hills of Kerala and named after T M Manoharan, the former principal chief conservator of forests of Krala for his service and conservation efforts;
- Kadar burrowing frog from Vazachal forest of Kerala, which is named after the Kadar tribe that lives in the region;
- CEPF burrowing frog discovered in the Maharashtra's Amboli and named after the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (USA) to recognise its role in protecting global biodiversity hotspots;
- Neil Cox's burrowing frog found in Parambikulam Tiger Reserve and named after Dr Neil Cox in recognition of his role in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List assessment of global amphibian species.
Exponential Increase in Species- The past decade has witnessed an exponential increase in the number of amphibian species found in the Western Ghats region.
- A total new species of amphibians (1,581) described globally between 2006 and 2015 has been discovered.
- The highest number of species (182) was found in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest.
