New Species

Species delimitation

We follow a multi-criteria approach to delimitation incorporating phylogenetic trees, genetic distance, geography and morphology. We employ a comprehensive field sampling approach taking into account the heterogeneity of the landscape which allows us to identify sister lineages with confidence.

In the last few years, we have carried out a systematic revision of the bush frogs of the Western Ghats (Raorchestes), Calotes in peninsular India (with two new genera and species), and several other new species of frogs. Most exciting, we have discovered a monotypic lineage of vine snake (Proahaetulla antiqua) and an ancient monotypic frog genus (Astrobatrachus kurichiyana), which has been assigned to a new separate sub-family within Nyctibatrachidae). The frog was named Astrobatrachus to highlight the blue starry spots on the side of the body and kurichiyana to honour members of the ‘Kurichiya' tribal community of Waynaad.

Several major revisions are in the pipeline, including of king cobras, vine snakes, pit vipers as well as more lizard and frog genera.

Taxonomic papers

Dinesh, K.P., S.P. Vijayakumar, V. Ramesh, A. Jayarajan, S.R. Chandra Mouli & K. Shanker (2020) A new lineage of Walkerana (Anura: Ranixalidae) from the Western Ghats of Peninsular India. Zootaxa.
Mallik, A.K., A.N. Srikanthan, S.R. Ganesh, S.P. Pal, S.P. Vijayakumar and K. Shanker (2019) A deeply divergent new lineage of vine snake from the southern Western Ghats of Peninsular India. PLOS One.
Vijayakumar, S.P., R. A. Pyron, K.P. Dinesh, V.R. Torsekar, A.V. Srikanthan, P. Swamy, E.L. Stanley, D.C. Blackburn and K. Shanker (2019) A new, ancient, microendemic lineage of frog (Astrobatrachidae fam. nov., Astrobatrachus kurichiyana gen et. sp. nov.) from the Western Ghats of Peninsular India. PeerJ.
Pal, S., S.P. Vijayakumar, K. Shanker, A. Jayarajan and V. Deepak (2018) A systematic revision of Calotes Cuvier, 1817 (Squamata: Agamidae from the Western Ghats adds two genera and reveals two new species. Zootaxa 4482(3): 401-450.
Dinesh, K.P., S.P. Vijayakumar, B.H. Channakeshavamurthy, V.R. Torsekar, N.U. Kulkarni & K. Shanker (2015) Systematic status of Fejervarya (Amphibia, Anura, Dicroglossidae) from South and SE Asia with the description of a new species from the Western Ghats of Peninsular India. Zootaxa.
Vijayakumar, S.P., K.P. Dinesh, M.V. Prabhu & K. Shanker (2014) Lineage delimitation and description of nine new species of bush frogs (Anura: Raorchestes, Rhacophoridae) from the Western Ghats Escarpment. Zootaxa 3893 (4): 451–488.

Other papers with contributions from the lab

Ganesh, S.R, Srikanthan, A.N., S.R. Chandramouli and G. Vogel (2020) Taxonomic revision of the Boiga ceylonensis group (Serpentes: Colubridae): reexamination of type specimens, redefinition of nominate taxa and an updated key. Zootaxa.
Srikanthan, A.N., G.C. Kumar, A.J. Urs & S.R. Ganesh (2018) Appearances are deceptive: molecular phylogeny recovers the Scaly Gecko Hemidactylus scabriceps (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) as a member of a scansorial and rupicolous clade. Journal of Threatened Taxa 10: 12147-12162.
Prasad, V.K., K.P. Dinesh, A. Das, P. Swamy, A.D. Shinde & J.B. Vishnu (2019) A New Species of Sphaerotheca Gunther, 1859 (Amphibia: Anura: Dicroglossidae) from the Agro Ecosystems of Chota Nagpur Plateau, India. Records of the Zoological Survey of India 119: 197-210.
Arrigo, M.I., L.M.D.O. Vilaca, A. Fofonjka, A.N. Srikanthan, A. Debry & M.C. Milinkovitch (2019) Phylogenetic mapping of scale nanostructure diversity in snakes. BMC Evolutionary Biology 19: 91.
Srikanthan, A.N., P. Swamy, A.V. Mohan and S. Pal (2018) A distinct new species of riparian rock-dwelling gecko (genus: Hemidactylus) from the southern Western Ghats. Zootaxa 4434 (1): 141–157.
Dinesh, K.P., N.U. Kulkarni, P. Swamy & P. Deepak (2017) A new species of Fejervarya Bolkay, 1915 from the lateritic plateaus of the Goa parts of the Western Ghats. Records of the Zoological Survey of India 117: 301-314.
Page, N.V. & S. Surveswaran (2014) Friesodielsia sahyadrica (Annonaceae), a peculiar new species from the Western Ghats, India. Phytotaxa 158 (3): 275–282.