Black mildews (Ascomycetes) from southern Western Ghats of Peninsular India with description of 14 new species

We carried out a taxonomic revision of Ahaetulla species inhabiting Peninsular India, using a multiple criteria approach (including genetics, morphology, and geography). Our work included populations of the A. nasuta complex (widespread across the entire region, including the Western Ghats), the A. pulverulenta complex (in the Western Ghats, within Peninsular India) and the A. dispar complex (endemic to the Southern Western Ghats) which all revealed undocumented cryptic diversity. Here, we describe five new species and effect nomenclatural changes to some recognised taxa. In the A. nasuta complex, we describe four species from several latitudinal blocks of the Western Ghats and make nomenclatural emendations to the plains populations in the Indian peninsula. We effect nomenclatural change in the A. pulverulenta population of the Western Ghats and describe a new species from the A. dispar group. Our study highlights the use of a multi-criteria approach in unraveling cryptic diversity. This study also reveals a striking case of discordance between morphological and genetic divergence, and the way this is reflected in previous taxonomic and nomenclatural treatments of these populations.

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Three new species of Atalophlebiinae (Ephemeroptera: Leptophlebiidae) of India, with a new record of the genus Megaglena Peters and Edmunds, 1970

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.5076.1.7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5076 (1) ◽

pp. 56-70

Author(s):

M. VASANTH ◽

K. A. SUBRAMANIAN ◽

C. SELVAKUMAR ◽

T. KUBENDRAN ◽

K. G. SIVARAMAKRISHNAN

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

New Record ◽

Tamil Nadu ◽

Distribution Map ◽

Andaman Island ◽

Peninsular India ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

Three New Species

Three new species of Leptophlebiidae viz., Choroterpes (Choroterpes) andamanensis Vasanth, Subramanian & Selvakumar n. sp., Edmundsula meghamalaiensis Vasanth, Subramanian & Selvakumar n. sp. and Megaglena agasthiya Vasanth, Subramanian & Selvakumar n. sp. are described based on our recent exploration of mayflies from the streams of Andaman Island, Tamil Nadu and Kerala part of the southern Western Ghats. The genus Megaglena Peters & Edmunds, 1970 has extended the distribution in southern peninsular India as represented by the occurrence of M. agasthiya n. sp. Larval key is provided to the known and new species of subgenus Choroterpes of India along with the distribution map of new species.

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Leucas sahyadriensis (Lamiaceae: Lamioideae) an overlooked new endemic species from India and notes on Leucas chinensis

Phytotaxa ◽

10.11646/phytotaxa.399.3.2 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 399 (3) ◽

pp. 187

Author(s):

PURAYIDATHKANDY SUNOJKUMAR

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Endemic Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Peninsular India ◽

Distribution Maps ◽

Wide Mouth ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

Wight’s specimen from Peninsular India which Bentham considered as Leucas chinensis is different from Retzius specimen from China. A lectotype for this name is selected from specimens collected by Bladh for Retzius in China. In contrast, Wight’s specimen represents a new species endemic to southern Western Ghats, having long branches, broadly ovate leaves, funnel shaped calyx with a wide mouth and stellately spreading, broadly triangular teeth and the corolla 16–17 mm long. The new species is named Leucas sahyadriensis. Detailed description, illustration, photographs, distribution maps and a table showing its differences from allied species are provided.

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A review of the genus Trigonoderus Westwood (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) from oriental region with the description of a new species from Southern Western Ghats, India

Oriental Insects ◽

10.1080/00305316.2021.1933638 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-10

Author(s):

Suresh K. Surya ◽

Pavittu Meethal Sureshan

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Oriental Region ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

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A new species of Syzygium (Myrtaceae) from the southern Western Ghats of Kerala, India

Phytotaxa ◽

10.11646/phytotaxa.71.1.5 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 71 (1) ◽

pp. 28 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

S. M. SHAREEF ◽

E. S.SANTHOSH KUMAR ◽

T. SHAJU

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

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Lasianthus agasthyamalayanus (Rubiaceae), a New Species from the Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India

Annales Botanici Fennici ◽

10.5735/085.055.0110 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 55 (1-3) ◽

pp. 87-91

Author(s):

Jagadeesan Raveendran ◽

Sam Paul Mathew ◽

Gangaprasad Appukuttannair ◽

Ettickal Sukumaran Santhosh Kumar

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

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Glycosmis nelliyampathiensis (Rutaceae), a new species from southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India

Phytotaxa ◽

10.11646/phytotaxa.496.3.5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 496 (3) ◽

pp. 269-274

Author(s):

MANJAKULAM KHADHERSHA JABEENA ◽

VADAKKEVEEDU JAGADEESH ASWANI ◽

MAYA C NAIR

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

A new species, Glycosmis nelliyampathiensis from Nelliyampathy hill ranges of southern Western Ghats, Palakkad, Kerala, India is described and illustrated here. The plant differs from its allied species G. angustifolia in terms of its unifoliolate leaves, elliptic leaflets, 1–4 flowered monochasial cymose inflorescence, hairiness of the corolla apex, sub-capitate stigma and ellipsoid-oblong fruit.

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A new species of Xylophis Beddome, 1878 (Serpentes: Pareidae) from the southern Western Ghats of India

Vertebrate Zoology ◽

10.3897/vz.71.e63986 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 71 ◽

pp. 219-230

Author(s):

Surya Narayanan ◽

Pratyush P. Mohapatra ◽

Amirtha Balan ◽

Sandeep Das ◽

David J. Gower

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

New Species ◽

Genetic Distance ◽

Dna Sequences ◽

Western Ghats ◽

White Collar ◽

The Body ◽

Western Ghats Of India ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

We reassess the taxonomy of the Indian endemic snake Xylophis captaini and describe a new species of Xylophis based on a type series of three specimens from the southernmost part of mainland India. Xylophis deepakisp. nov. is most similar phenotypically to X. captaini, with which it was previously confused. The new species differs from X. captaini by having a broader, more regular and ventrally extensive off-white collar, more ventral scales (117–125 versus 102–113), and by lack of flounces on the body and proximal lobes of the hemipenis. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial 16S DNA sequences strongly indicates that the new species is most closely related to X. captaini, differing from it by an uncorrected pairwise genetic distance of 4.2%. A revised key to the species of Xylophis is provided.

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A new species of Cinnamomum (Lauraceae) from Nilgiris, southern Western Ghats, India

Phytotaxa ◽

10.11646/phytotaxa.224.3.7 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 224 (3) ◽

pp. 283

Author(s):

M P Geethakumary ◽

Alagramam Govindasamy Pandurangan ◽

S Deepu

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Morphological Characters ◽

Southern Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

A new species of Cinnamomum (Lauraceae), C. nilagiricum is described and illustrated on the basis of distinct morphological characters known from Nilgiris, southern Western Ghats, India. It is allied to C. dubium but differs in the nature of trunk; shape, size and smell of leaves; 4-locellate anthers of whorl III stamens etc. A detailed description, distribution, phenology, illustration, colour plates and relevant notes are provided.

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A new species of rock-dwelling Cnemaspis Strauch, 1887 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Tamil Nadu, southern India

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4571.3.6 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4571 (3) ◽

pp. 383

Author(s):

AKSHAY KHANDEKAR

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Endemic Species ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Tamil Nadu ◽

Southern India ◽

Peninsular India ◽

Tamil Nadu State ◽

The Rich ◽

The Western Ghats ◽

A New Species

A new species of the gekkonid genus Cnemaspis is described based on a series of nine specimens from near Sankari in Salem district, Tamil Nadu state, southern India. The new species is diagnosable by the following suite of characters: a small-sized Cnemaspis (adult snout to vent length less than 33 mm); heterogeneous dorsal pholidosis consisting of weakly keeled granular scales intermixed with large strongly keeled, conical tubercles, 9–11 rows of dorsal tubercles, 12–17 tubercles in paravertebral rows; spine-like scales absent on flank, 17–20 lamellae under digit IV of pes. Males with 4–6 femoral pores on each thigh, separated on either side by eight poreless scales from four precloacal pores; precloacal pores separated medially by a single poreless scale; two single dorsal ocelli on occiput and between forelimb insertions, two pairs of ocelli on either side just anterior and posterior to forelimb insertions. Cnemaspis agarwali sp. nov. is the fifth endemic species of Cnemaspis from peninsular India outside the Western Ghats and highlights the rich and unique diversity of this understudied region.

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