Skittish forest creature — with ‘large’ claws — found in India. It’s a new species
In a mountainous forest of eastern India, a scaly creature with “large” claws perched on a fern. Its remote home and skittish nature likely helped it go unnoticed — but not anymore.
When visiting scientists finally found the “slender” animal, they discovered a new species.
Researchers visited several sites in Arunachal Pradesh between 2022 and 2023 to survey wildlife, according to a study published July 29 in the peer-reviewed journal Vertebrate Zoology. The visits were part of a larger project to document the area’s diverse lizards.
During the nighttime hikes, researchers found 10 unfamiliar-looking geckos, the study said. They took a closer look at the animals and soon realized they’d discovered a new species: Cyrtodactylus namdaphaensis, or the Namdapha bent-toed gecko.
Namdapha bent-toed geckos are considered “medium-sized,” reaching about 3 inches in length, the study said. They have “moderately large” heads with “short,” “rounded” snouts. Their “slender” bodies are covered in small spikes and their fingers have “large” claws.
Photos show the dark brown coloring of the new species. A mixture of pale brown blotches and white spots dot the lizard’s back. Its eyes appear silvery green with “sharp” yellow eyelash-like scales around the top.
Namdapha bent-toed geckos live in a tropical forest habitat between elevations of 1,300 and 2,100 feet, the study said. They were found at night on trees, ferns, rocks and forest trails.
Researchers also saw several skittish geckos perched on ferns near a stream. “At the slightest disturbance, the lizards would drop into the thick vegetation below.”
Researchers said they named the new species after the Namdapha Tiger Reserve where it was first discovered. This wildlife park is on the easternmost edge of India.
So far, the new species has been found at six sites in Arunachal Pradesh, the study said.
Arunachal Pradesh is a disputed region in the Himalayan mountains along the India-China border. Although India controls the region, both India and China claim it. The border between Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, a neighboring Indian state, is also disputed.
The new species was identified by its spikes, scale pattern and other subtle physical features, the study said. DNA analysis found the new species had at least 6% genetic divergence from other related gecko species.
The research team included Bitupan Boruah, Surya Narayanan, Neelavar Ananthram Aravind, Samuel Lalronunga, V. Deepak and Abhijit Das.
The team also discovered five more new species of gecko: the Barail Hills bent-toed gecko, Kiphire bent-toed gecko, Manipur bent-toed gecko, Ngengpui bent-toed gecko and Siang Valley bent-toed gecko.
This story was originally published August 1, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Skittish forest creature — with ‘large’ claws — found in India. It’s a new species."
