New Damselfly Species 'Euphaea wayanadensis' Recently Discovered in Kerala.

Environment

In April 2025, a group of scientists have discovered a new species of damselfly named Euphaea wayanadensis in the Wayanad landscape of the Western Ghats, Kerala. The discovery of the new species was published in the peer-reviewed journal ENTOMON.


      - This species marks the 191st recorded odonate species (including dragonflies and damselflies) found in Kerala and the 223rd one to be documented from the Western Ghats.

      - The newly discovered species belongs to the Euphaeidae family and was identified using integrated taxonomy methods.

      - Initially, the new species' features had been misidentified as Euphaea pseudodispar, a species described from Maharashtra. But later, the study found that the new species exhibits various morphological differences from Euphaea pseudodispar like: longer black hind wing patch, wider and uninterrupted humeral and antehumeral stripes in males, among others.

Main Point :-   (i) The new species is observed throughout the year, except during the months of March and April.

      (ii) In 2013, a group of researchers first observed the distinct morphotype of Euphaea wayanadensis at the Kalindi River, Thirunelli in Wayanad district (Kerala).


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