A new species of the gekkonid genus Cnemaspis has been described from the lateritic plateau of the northern Western Ghats of Maharashtra, western India. The discovery of Cnemaspis girii from the Kaas plateau in Satara district, Maharashtra, highlights the diversity of herpetofauna of this region and adds to the growing knowledge of the diversity of the Western Ghats. The lateritic plateaus of the northern Western Ghats support endemic herpetofauna and are in need of protection owing to their narrow distribution … Read More
A new species of gecko from the lateritic plateaus of Northern Western Ghats
Researchers from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bangalore and Centre for Ecological Sciences, IISc, Bangalore have described a new species of gecko belonging to the genus Cnemaspis from Kaas plateau in Satara district of Maharashtra. The new species is named after Dr. Varad Giri of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) who has extensively worked to document the herpetofauna of India. The research paper was published on 17th of June in the journal Zootaxa (read summary) … Read More
Unregulated Tourism at Kaas Plateau, Maharashtra.
Kaas flower plateau is Maharashtra’s valley of flowers. The plateau is located between 1200 – 1240 metres and is about 25km from Satara town. As the monsoon sets in (Sept / Oct), the plateau and the surrounding hillsides come alive with millions of blooming wild flowers. The carpet changes colour every passing day through the monsoon.
This spectacle attracts many tourists and photographers resulting in unregulated tourism causing vehicular traffic, air and noise pollution and pressure on the fragile habitat. … Read More
CI is a non-profit, non-commercial portal that aims to facilitate wildlife and nature conservation by providing reliable information and the tools needed to campaign effectively.
