Living creatures belonging to a new and hitherto unknown species of legless amphibian hid under the waterlogged soil of the mountains to the north-east of India. Discovered by a team of biologists from the University of Delhi, they have been called "chikilidae" and existed before the dinosaurs.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Living beings belonging to one hid under the water-soaked soil of the mountains to the north-east of India new and hitherto unknown species of legless amphibians. Discovered by a team of biologists fromUniversity of Delhi, were called "chikilidae"And exist since before the dinosaurs.
The natives have often mistaken them for small poisonous snakes, but it is now known that they are small gymnophytic amphibians (or apodi), who live hidden in the earth, yes they feed on worms and harmful insects for plantations and remain next to the brood for over three months, a protective attitude rarely observed in amphibians. The study that will make them famous around the world, albeit without their knowledge, was published in the journal of the Royal Society of London.
Led by Professor Sathyabhama Das Biju, scientists have been digging in Indian forest beds for over five years before finding them. But now they can provide even more unambiguous proof that the forests of India are a veritable hotbed of life and that this habitat must be absolutely protected from the nefarious economic and industrial development of the country.
“This is an important site for research on biological diversity, and also one of the least explored. Hopefully this new family will show the importance of funding research in the field. We need to know what we have, so we can know what to save, ”explains the Dr. Biju, which now, thanks to this new discovery, will be able to add important new details for the study of the migration of species in prehistory and of the influence in the evolutionary paths of continental changes. This family would, in fact, its closest relatives in tropical Africa, about 11.000 kilometers away, from which, according to DNA analysis, the Indian group separated over 140 million years ago.
And the first effort for the defense of the chikilidae was to give him a scientific name that reflected the Garo language of the inhabitants: “We hope that when the locals see that this name in their language is used all over the world they will understand the importance of this animal and will join forces in an attempt to save it,” explained Biju.
La in fact, biodiversity in India is rapidly dwindling due to the merciless destruction of these habitats: trees are cut down to build roads and to encourage the growth of industry, the environment is polluted with i pesticides, hitherto uncontaminated areas are populated. All of this means a world of trouble for this animal and for all those who live in the forests, many of which are going extinct without ever being discovered.
