A group of scientists has discovered a new and rare species of toad in the Dampa Tiger Reserve, a forest located in the eastern Indian state of Mizoram, according to the latest issue of Biodiversitas, an Indonesia-based journal.
The species will be known as Bufoides bhupathyi, named after known Indian herpetologist Subramanian Bhupathy.
The discovery by biologists is seen as quite significant, since previously just two members of the Bufoides genus -- Bufoides meghalayanus and Bufoides kempi – were found in Meghalaya.
New, Rare Toad Species Discovered In Mizoram
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However, the new species is different from the co-generic (similar) species in interdigital webbing, colouration, skin tuberculation, and the presence of ovoid, tuberculated and depressed parotid glands.
The toads, about an inch in length, are covered in black, medium-sized tubercles or warts.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has classified the species as ‘critically endangered’, and Bufoides meghalayanus was restricted to just three locations, all within 1.5km of each other in Cherrapunjee in Meghalaya.
Although the new species is known only to be in the Dampa tiger reserve and restricted, the species could be assessed to categorise as endangered under IUCN’s criteria, the journal suggests.
Amphibians currently make up 41% (approx. 17,220) of the 42,000 animals on the IUCN’s list of threatened species.