A new species of lizard has been discovered in the northwestern ghats of Maharashtra by four researchers from Bangalore’s National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) and Centre for Ecological Studies (CES).
The species has been named Cnemaspis Girii, after Dr. Varad Giri of the Bombay Natural History Society. The research paper on the subject was published in the prestigious journal Zootaxa this month.
The gecko from the genus Cnemaspis, or dwarf geckos, was discovered in the unexplored forests of the Kaas plateau in Satara district.
It was first sighted by Harshad Bhosle and Zeeshan Mirza in 2010. It was found on the rocks and pebbles near the water streams in those forests.
There are around 17 Cnemaspis species found in Maharashtra. Geckos of this genus have a unique rounded pupil, unlike the cat-like eyes of other geckos.
Dr. Giri already has a snake species named after him in 2012 — Dendrelathis Girii — which he discovered in the Western Ghats.
