New Species of Frog Discovered in North-East

Researchers from Delhi University and the Wildlife Institute of India in association with researchers from Indonesia and the US have discovered a new species of paddy frog from Assam in Northeast India.

Aishani

• The new species has been named Aishani derived from the Sanskrit word which means North East.
• Aishani belongs to the genus Micryletta which is a group of narrow-mouthed frogs which are primarily and widely distributed in Southeast Asia and more commonly known as paddy frogs.
• Aishani differs from other paddy frogs by the virtue of characteristics such as reddish-brown colouration on back, prominent dark streaks and ash-grey mottling on the lateral sides, the shape of the snout, and absence of web on its feet.
• The species was discovered based on specimens collected from a degraded forest area in Cachar district of Assam. The species is likely to be more widely distributed in Northeast India, particularly the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot region that lies south of River Brahmaputra.

It is predicted that other undescribed species in this genus could be in existence in regions such as Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.