SHILLONG, July 2: Scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) have discovered a new frog species in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tale Wildlife Sanctuary, marking a significant addition to India’s herpetofaunal diversity, officials said on Tuesday. The new species is a forest-dwelling horned frog discovered by a team of ZSI scientists from Shillong, Itanagar, and Pune.
“The research, published in the current edition of the Zoological Survey of India, overturns an earlier erroneous report of the Maoson horned frog (Xenophrys maosonensis) in India, which was reported by ZSI researchers in Shillong in 2019,” said Bhaskar Saikia, one of the scientists, to PTI.
He explained that the revised conclusion regarding the species’ identity came after further analysis revealed substantial genetic disparities between the Indian specimen and X. maosonensis from Vietnam and China, prompting a reevaluation.
Saikia, along with his colleague Bikramjit Sinha, also from ZSI Shillong, led the research. The team included KP Dinesh and A. Shabnam from ZSI Pune, and Ilona Jacinta Kharkongor from ZSI Itanagar. (PTI)
