New insect species discovered in biodiversity-rich Nilgiris

UDHAGAMANDALAM: Researchers from the molecular biodiversity laboratory in the department of Zoology and Wildlife Biology in the Government Arts College in Ooty have discovered a new wingless insect in the Nilgiris.
A research paper on the new species has been published in international journal Biologia published by Springer Nature. “The 1mm-long flightless insect has been named Bionychiurus tamilensis as it was recorded in Tamil Nadu,” said associate professor and laboratory head R Sanil.“There are only six species under this genus reported so far across the world and reported only from cold high-altitude regions of Switzerland, China and Korea.”
The insect was first observed in 2018 in the soil samples collected from Ooty Government Arts College campus. Further surveys showed its presence in grasslands and unpolluted humus soil samples.
“We could not isolate the species from soil collected from agricultural lands and waste dumping yards. We assume this is due to presence of pesticides and is an indicator of soil pollution,” said Sanil. “An endemic one, similar genus is not reported even from the Himalayas or northeast region.”
Scientists believe the genus diverged around 450 million years ago, said Muhsina Thunisa, lead author of the research paper. The insects decompose waste materials to nutrients and nourish the soil.
DNA profiling was conducted and details are deposited in the NCBI database. None of the similar specimens obtained from other parts of the world are barcoded till date.
Male and female specimens of the species are deposited in the Zoological Survey of India in Kolkata for future reference, added Thunisa.