Species Added to India’s Flora and Fauna Database

Context: India added 683 new species to its fauna and 433 taxa to its flora in the year 2024, as per the data released by the Environment Ministry.

India’s Flora and Fauna

India is a megadiverse nation, having a staggering diversity of flora and fauna given its diverse topography, climate, and ecosystems. From the snowy Himalayas to the Rajasthan desert, the Western Ghats’ green tracts, and the colourful Andaman and Nicobar Islands, each geographical area supports distinctive species, and thus India is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in the world.

Faunal Discoveries (683 total)

• 459 new species
• 224 new records
• Includes 2 new genera, 37 new species of reptiles, and 5 new species of amphibians.

Significant Faunal Discoveries

• Anguiculus dicaprioi – Snake species, named after Leonardo DiCaprio
• Dravidoseps gounasi – New genus of reptiles

Top States for Faunal Discoveries

• Kerala – 101 (80 new species + 21 new records)
• Karnataka – 82 (68 + 14)
• Tamil Nadu – 63 (50 + 13)
• Arunachal Pradesh – 72 (42 + 30)
• Meghalaya – 42 (25 + 17)
• West Bengal – 56 (25 + 31)
• Andaman & Nicobar Islands – 43 discoveries

Floral Discoveries (433 taxa)

• 410 new species
• 23 infraspecific taxa

Top States for Floral Discoveries

• Kerala – 58 taxa
• Maharashtra – 45 taxa
• Uttarakhand – 40 taxa

Breakdown of 2024 Plant Discoveries

• 154 angiosperms
• 4 pteridophytes
• 15 bryophytes
• 63 lichens
• 32 algae
• 9 microbes

Significant Floral Discoveries

• Bulbophyllum gopalanianum
• Coelogyne tripurensis
• Gastrodia indica
• Gastrodia sikimensis
  (All are rare orchids)

Other Key Insights of India’s Flora and Fauna

• Hotspot regions (Western Ghats & Northeast) contributed 35% of all discoveries.
• India has now documented a total of 56,177 plant species, including:
  • Angiosperms
  • Gymnosperms
  • Pteridophytes
  • Bryophytes
  • Lichens, algae, fungi, and microbes

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