2025/01/01 by Amrut Bhosale, Tejas Thackeray, Omkar Yadav +1 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Invertebrate Taxonomy and Ecology #Lepidoptera: Biology and Taxonomy #Mollusks and Parasites Studies
paper · doi:10.61733/jconch/4543
openalex publication_date 2025/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23
We describe a new micro-snail species of the genus Dicharax based on 16 specimens collected from three sacred groves in Kolhapur District, in the northern Western Ghats of Maharashtra State, India. This species can be easily distinguished from its congeners in several non-overlapping morphological characters: R2 with closely spaced, blunt, elevated ribs; R3 with an inflated, blunt swelling; and basal part of the outer peristome (part close to the umbilicus) is more expanded than the rest of the outer peristome. We also describe and illustrate the living animal, operculum, radula, and jaw. This is the first report of the genus from the northern Western Ghats and extends its known geographic distribution in the Western Ghats by 370 km north. The new species highlights the importance of sacred groves as a biodiversity reservoir and emphasizes the need for in-depth investigations to uncover largely unknown biodiversity at these sites. We also discuss the need for systematic, fine-scale sampling in the northern Western Ghats to reveal mostly unknown land-snail diversity.