New species of gecko endemic to Western Ghats discovered in Coonoor

A new species of gecko, believed to be present only around Coonoor, has been discovered in the Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu.

Published in ‘Bionimina’, Dravidogecko coonoor is the formal name of the “…distinct population of Dravidogecko in Coonoor Hills of the Upper Nilgiris, Western Ghats, India,” noted authors A. Abinesh, R.S. Naveen, A.N. Srikanthan, S. Babu, and S.R. Ganesh. The paper is titled ‘Code-compliant description of a recently identified district Dravidogecko species from Coonoor, Western Ghats, India’.

Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Abinesh, the lead author of the paper, said the gecko from Coonoor had originally been thought to belong to the same species of geckos known previously as Hemidactylus anamallensis, and now known as Dravidogecko anamallensis. “However, surveys done throughout the Western Ghats led to the subsequent discovery of eight different Dravidogecko species,” he said.

Following the discovery of the new gecko species in Coonoor, the number of Dravidogecko species found across the Western Ghats now stands at nine, added Mr. Abinesh. The researchers said the species was noted in both urban as well as natural habitats, including the walls of a building, on the branches of plants, and in tree bark and wall crevices.

“In much as is known, Dravidogecko coonoor is currently known with certainty from the type locality Coonoor. The habitat here is generally characterised by a matrix of montane forests and monoculture plantations amidst human habitations. In all of the recorded places, human influence and settlement were rather dominant, with only partial vegetation cover,” noted the authors.

The authors also said the species could be a “potentially threatened gecko species” whose population “as far as we know exists entirely outside the protected area network.” This makes them highly susceptible to population decline due to habitat fragmentation, deforestation and potentially, climate change, said Mr. Abinesh, adding Dravidogecko was the only species of gecko endemic to the high elevation regions of the Western Ghats.