A staff of researchers on the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and The Environment (ATREE) had reported rediscovering a long-lost species of the velvet worms (phylum Onychophora), one of many oldest dwelling fossils on this planet, after 111 years.
Named Typhloperipatus williamsoni, the traditional species — estimated to be round 220 million years outdated — was noticed by the staff within the Siang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh and the rediscovery was revealed within the Journal of (*111*) History. The examine supplies the primary molecular information for the species.
Tracing the colonial trails
According to the paper, T. williamsoni was first collected in the course of the “Abor expedition” by Stanley Kemp, the erstwhile superintendent of the Indian Museum, Calcutta, and his staff in December 1911 in Siang Valley. Since Kemp’s discovery, there was no documented information of it from India.
The specimens had been noticed below stones whereas searching for ants in pre-monsoon season.
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Between 2021 and 2023, the ATREE staff comprising Surya Narayanan, D.R. Priyadarsanan, A.P. Ranjith, R. Sahanashree and Aravind Neelavar Ananthram, together with the National Geographic Society and Fellis Creation, adopted the paths of the Abor expedition. This time, the researchers discovered two people of T. williamsoni for the primary time since its description. Interestingly, the specimens had been noticed below stones whereas searching for ants in pre-monsoon season.
Living fossils
“Onycophora is a very old group, easily older than 350 million years. It has only two families and not more than 200 species. The diversity is very less,” defined Mr. Narayanan, lead authour of the paper.
“These were evolving almost simultaneously with dinosaurs. When the mass extinction happened, probably a lot of them were wiped out. What we see today is mostly those species which escaped extinction.”
The rediscovery of T. williamsoni, which was considered extinct, additionally may assist resolve a biogeographic thriller, he famous.
Turning a nook
The molecular information from T. williamsoni indicated that South Asian onychophoras cut up from their neotropical (Central and South America together with southern elements of Mexico and the Caribbean) and solely African kinfolk round 237 million years in the past.
The rediscovery of T. williamsoni, a naturally uncommon species, is essential by way of addressing gaps within the evolutionary historical past of Asian peripatids.
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Interestingly, the Asian onycophora had been discovered to haven’t any kinfolk in Australian onychophoras. This is uncommon given invertebrates present in Southeast Asia and India are often associated to these in Australia. Asian Onychophora is likely one of the few exceptions to this relationship.
“This rediscovery could actually turn the biogeographical story and could tell us more about how this one small group of animals ended up in Asia from the neotropics, which was always a puzzle,” Mr. Narayanan famous.
More species
The metallic blue ant, Paraparatrechina neela,greater than 15 new species of parasitic wasps, a mollusc and a gecko are among the many different revealed discoveries.
The metallic blue ant, Paraparatrechina neela,greater than 15 new species of parasitic wasps, a mollusc and a gecko are among the many different revealed discoveries.
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“We may take a few more years to discover all the new species we have collected in the expedition,” stated Mr. Priyadarshanan, who was a part of the staff. He added that extra expeditions will likely be held within the area.
While the rediscovery of T. williamsoni, a naturally uncommon species, is essential by way of addressing gaps within the evolutionary historical past of Asian peripatids, the paper notes that its pure habitat faces vital threats from increasing agriculture, deforestation, and slash-and-burn cultivation within the Siang Valley. The examine requires the conservation of those habitats and broader sampling within the area.
Published – April 12, 2025 02:03 pm IST
