Pregnant creature — with ‘trapezoidal’ nostrils — found in India. It’s a new species
Near a waterfall in southern India, a pregnant creature navigated through the dry leaves on the forest floor. Visiting scientists spotted the scaly animal — and discovered a new species.
Researchers visited hundreds of sites in Tamil Nadu between 2018 and 2023 in search of wildlife, according to a study published Jan. 19 in the journal Vertebrate Zoology. The large-scale search had one goal: find and identify a specific type of lizard.
While surveying the Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve, researchers encountered 20 “cryptic” lizards that they didn’t recognize, the study said. They took a closer look at the animals and realized they’d discovered a new species: Dravidoseps srivilliputhurensis, or the SMTR leaf-litter skink.
SMTR leaf-litter skinks are considered “medium-sized,” reaching just over 4 inches in length, the study said. They have “relatively slender” bodies with “short” heads and “short” limbs. On their lower eyelids, the skinks have a “transparent central window.” Their nostrils have a “trapezoidal” shape.
Photos show several SMTR leaf-litter skinks. The lizards have a “dull bronze-brown” coloring with darker stripes down their sides, researchers said. Several skinks appear wider in the middle. A skinnier one looks almost like a slithering snake.
SMTR leaf-litter skinks were found in dry leaves, under rocks and near waterfalls in a low elevation forest, the study said. Several female skinks were found pregnant with either two or three babies.
Unlike most lizards, which reproduce by laying eggs, researchers said the new species is viviparous, meaning it reproduces by giving birth to live young.
Researchers said they named the new species after Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve, abbreviated as SMTR. The new species was discovered and, so far, has only been found at this reserve.
Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve is in Tamil Nadu and about 1,300 miles south of New Delhi.
The new species was identified by its eyelids, reproduction method, scale pattern and DNA, the study said.
The research team included Ishan Agarwal, Tejas Thackeray and Akshay Khandekar.
The team also discovered a new genus of skinks, Dravidoseps, and four more new species: a “bronze” one, a “dark brown” one, “coconut brown” one and “dark bronze-brown” one.
This story was originally published January 23, 2024 at 11:59 AM with the headline "Pregnant creature — with ‘trapezoidal’ nostrils — found in India. It’s a new species."
