A new species of gecko has been discovered from the Western Ghats in Kerala, and scientists have named it Palakkad Dwarf Gecko or Cnemaspis Palakkadensis, after Palakkad, where it was found. TNM spoke to the herpetologist Amit Sayyad who said that his new discovery was by sheer accident.
"For years together, this species had slipped the eyes of researchers who do field surveys, as it is very similar to the littoralis, a gecko species from the same genus known as Cnemaspis. However, on doing a genetic analysis, it was clear that this lizard was genetically different and had distinct morphological characteristics and from the littoralis," Amit Sayyad, scientist and herpetologist who discovered the Palakkad Dwarf Gecko, tells TNM.
A scientist and researcher at the NGO Wildlife Protection and Research Society, Amit has been studying Raorchestes, a genus of frogs as well as the Cnemaspis genus of geckos for over 15 years. In May 2019, on a reptile survey trip to Annakal in Palakkad, he found the Palakkadensis or Palakkad Dwarf Gecko which is now the 43rd gecko species to be discovered in India.
Although the dwarf gecko shares similarities to the coastal day gecko or Cnemaspis littoralis, discovered by British zoologist Thomas C Jerdon in 1854, Amit found that the dwarf gecko was genetically different. “Its physical features include small and smooth dorsal scales (scales on the upper portion of its body), absence of spine-line tubercles, 15 or 16 femoral pores on each side separated by 14 poreless scales. Basically it is very different from any other species of geckos. The reptile's 16S rRNA gene is also varied from all other species found in India,” Amit says.
True to its name, the reptile is tiny - just about the size of a human finger. "An average Palakkad Dwarf Gecko will be 32.2 mm. It also has beautiful black and brown patches on its dorsal (upper side) body and an orange shade on its chin or ventral (lower) part of its body," Amit adds.
The discovery throws open the possibility of other unnamed or un-described species living in the Western Ghats, including its tourist hot beds.
"The place where I found this Palakkad Dwarf Gecko was crowded and filled with tourists). It was a stream near Annakal and the place was not a protected area. There was disposed garbage and abandoned cigarette butts lying around. It was right there that I made this discovery," Amit says, stating that the state government must take efforts to preserve the Western Ghats which is rich in fauna. “Several of the geckos that have been discovered were found in the Western Ghats, which is one among 36 biodiversity hotspots," Amit adds. Others have been found from Eastern Ghats and Central India.
The dwarf gecko feeds on all kinds of insects and worms such as crickets, bugs, beetles, larva of butterfly and even small frogs. "In a way, geckos are crucial to Western Ghats to control its insect population," Amit adds.
Apart from Amit, scientists Vivek Philip Cyriac, Raveendran Dileepkumar and Vivek Vidyanathan too helped in the research related to the Palakkad dwarf gecko.
"My kids Ayaan (9) and Masum (10) too helped in photographing type specimens in the laboratory," Amit added. The research paper on this discovery was published in the American scientific journal 'Amphibian and Reptile Conservation' on Thursday.