BHUBANESWAR: Researchers of Central University of Odisha (CUO) at Koraput in collaboration with scientists of Mahatma Gandhi University at Kerala have found two new species of Megascolex earthworms in the district. They have been named Megascolex jeyporeghatiensis (after Jeypore Ghati) and Megascolex quadripappilatus.
During an earthworm diversity study by CUO, researcher Ayusmita Naik collected some large earthworms from Rani Duduma and Jeypore Ghati areas. The earthworms were examined by Sharat Kumar Palita, dean of School of Biodiversity and Conservation of Natural Resources of the CUO.
Subsequently, former scientist of Zoological Survey of India R Paliwal and earthworm specialists Prasantha Narayanan and AP Thomas of Advanced Centre of Environmental Studies and Sustainable Development, Mahatma Gandhi University, identified the two species as completely new to science. The findings were recently published in international taxonomic journal Zootaxa.
While the length of the Megascolex jeyporeghatiensis earthworm ranges from 221 to 281 mm with 168 to 180 segments, that of Megascolex quadripappilatus ranges from 273 to 308 mm with 188 to 190 segments.
With this discovery, the total number of Megascolex species in the world has increased to 70, of which 34 are found in India.
In India, almost all Megascolex species are restricted to the southern portion of the Western Ghats. With these new species, the range of the Megascolex group of earthworms has been further extended to northern Eastern Ghats.
Palita informed that the new species are anecic worms who consume fibrous plant material like barks, woody parts, and leafy material including pebbles and rocky soil. They live in forest soil with high organic biomass, they indicate soil health and maintain soil productivity. “Earthworms have the ability to biomonitor soil pollutants and are able to perform carbon sequestration and reduce soil pollutants. The record of these two new species from Koraput has further highlighted the rich unexplored biodiversity of the region as well as the Eastern Ghats,” he said.
CUO VC Chakradhar Tripathy congratulated the team for the finding.