Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has lauded the State’s exceptional biodiversity following the identification of six new lizard species by scientists from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE), and the Natural History Museum, London.
The newly discovered lizards are bent-toed geckos, identified through detailed morphological studies and molecular analyses.
According to a publication in Vertebrate Zoology, these species include:
Namdapha bent-toed gecko: Found in Namdapha Tiger Reserve and Kamlang Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh.
Siang Valley bent-toed gecko: Discovered in Arunachal Pradesh’s Siang Valley.
Nengpui bent-toed gecko: Located in Mizoram’s Nengpui Wildlife Sanctuary.
Manipur bent-toed gecko: Found near Lamdan Kabui village, Manipur.
Barail Hills bent-toed gecko: Indigenous to Peren district, Nagaland.
Kiphire bent-toed gecko: Discovered in Kiphire district, Nagaland.
In a statement on X, CM Khandu celebrated the discovery, writing, “Arunachal Pradesh is a treasure trove of biodiversity, boasting an array of fauna. The discovery of these new lizard species by scientists from WII, ATREE, and NHM, London, further highlights our remarkable diversity.”
He stressed on the importance of conservation, adding, “Let us conserve them for future generations.”
