Eight more frog species discovered in the country
The record on the number of frog species in the country jumped to more than 200 with the discovery of eight more species. However, scientists are confident there are more to be discovered in Sri Lanka.
Eight new species of Pseudophilautus or Shrub frogs, namely: Pseudophilautus bambaradeniyai, P. Dayawansai, P. Jagathgunawardanai, P. Karunarathnai, P. Newtonjayawardanei, P. Puranappu, P. Samarakoon, and P. Sirilwijesundarai were discovered as a result of a survey carried out to study the herpeto-faunal diversity at higher elevations of the Sri Pada World Heritage Site (Peak Wilderness) and Central Hills of Sri Lanka.
Detailed descriptions of new species along with colour photographs and line drawings for each species are provided in a scientific paper titled `The Journal of Threatened Taxa published on Wednesday.
The new species possess unique morphological characters and are well distinguishable from one another that could be easily identified in the field, says lead author, well known herpetologist Mendis Wickramasinghe.
The conservation status of all species described had been considered ‘Critically Endangered’, except for P. newtonjayawardanei, as all the other new species were recorded from single locations, and their habitats were under severe threat, he added.
The research team includes Dulan Ranga Vidanapathirana, Sameera Airyarathne, Gehan Rajeev, Amila Chanaka, Jennifer Pastorini, Gayan Chathuranaga and Nethu Wickramasinghe.
"We cannot just come to conclusion till we conduct careful observation. Studies on canopies are very less in Sri Lanka. More studies on them would give the opportunity to find more species," he added.
He also expressed concerns about the Peak Wilderness forest due to human interference and he suspect’s water quality in the Central hills was not as it used to be and a comprehensive study on the water quality was of paramount importance.
Peak Wilderness was designated a sanctuary on October 25, 1940 (Gazette Notification No. 8,675), having an area of about 55,300 acres (22,379 ha). According to the current management plan, the geographical area of the sanctuary is about 24,000 ha, of which 21,175 ha comprises natural or semi-natural vegetation; the rest is no longer forest and includes tea estate and village settlements.
The sanctuary lies in the centre of the western ridge of the Central Highlands, north-east of Ratnapura and straddling the border of Central and Sabaragamuwa provinces.
Its eastern boundary is contiguous with the Horton Plains National Park. Peak Wilderness occupies the escarpment that rises steeply from the lowlands to the south and west. Much of the terrain is very rugged, with altitudes ranging from 50 metres near Ratnapura to 2,238 metres at Adam’s Peak, Sri Lanka’s fourth highest peak.
Mendis said a systematic survey was carried out over a two-year period, in order to document the amphibian diversity across an elevation gradient (550 metres to 2240 metres), in the Sripada massif, Peak Wilderness.
Surveys focused on terrain where not much light has been shed by scientists, due to difficulty in accessing those areas owing to harsh weather conditions and tough terrain. Though there were more than 200 frog and toad species only 112 were supported with scientific papers. Of this 112, 65 are shrub frogs.
He thanked Nagao Natural Environment Foundation, Japan and Biodiversity Secretariat of the Ministry of Environment, for financially assisting them in research.
Category: Local
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