02219nas a2200301 4500008004100000245013500041210006900176260001600245300001000261490000600271520130300277653001301580653002001593653002501613653002601638653001201664653001001676653002001686653002201706653001801728653001201746100002701758700002901785700002801814700001901842700002001861856003601881 2018 eng d00aReproduction and metamorphosis in the Myristica Swamp tree frog, Mercurana myristicapalustris (Anura: Rhacophoridae)0 aReproduction and metamorphosis in the iMyristicai Swamp tree fro cJan-01-2018 ae59340 v63 a

The reproductive biology of the Myristica Swamp tree frog (Mercurana myristicapalus- tris), a monotypic rhacophorid frog endemic to the foothills of the Western Ghats mountains of India, has remained unknown since the description of the genus and species. We monitored individuals from parental generation amplexus to the comple- tion of offspring generation tadpole metamorphosis. Surprisingly, our observations revealed that this species exhibits many previously unknown characteristics, including the first ever record of the female, and a diverse call repertoire, consisting of five different call types (the functions of which remain incompletely known). We were also able to determine that reproductive activity peaked during the late pre-monsoon season, that males engaged in intraspecific aggressive encounters to occupy and to defend desirable territories, and that oviposition took place in terrestrial nests made by females. Embryonic development in the unattended nest was followed by tadpole development, which concluded within 40 days. The specific breeding mode employed by Mercurana, which restricts its range to the endangered Myristica swamp ecosystem, likely renders it susceptible to multiple threats, which should be considered jointly in future conservation planning.

10aAmphibia10aAnimal Behavior10aConservation biology10aDevelopmental Biology10aecology10aIndia10aMyristica swamp10aReproductive mode10aRhacophoridae10azoology1 aAbraham, Robin, Kurian1 aMathew, Jobin, Kuruvilla1 aRaju, David, Valiaparam1 aRao, Ramprasad1 aZachariah, Anil uhttps://peerj.com/articles/593401189nas a2200193 4500008004100000022001400041245012500055210006900180260001600249300000800265490000900273520052100282653001800803653001000821653001600831653001500847653001800862856011500880 2018 eng d a1175-532600aA new species and a new record of genus Hexacentrus Serville, 1831 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Hexacentrinae) from India0 anew species and a new record of genus Hexacentrus Serville 1831  cMar-12-2018 a5470 v45263 a

The paper deals with a new record Hexacentrus japonicus Karny, 1907 and a new species Hexacentrus bifurcata sp. nov. from India. Necessary and important illustrations with SEM images of stridulatory file of Hexacentrus japonicus and Hexacentrus bifurcata sp. nov. are provided. A key to the Indian species of Hexacentrus and morphometric ranges of all the species have also been included. Type specimens have been preserved for further investigation in Zoology Department, Aligarh Muslim University (ZDAMU).

10aHexacentrinae10aIndia10anew species10aOrthoptera10aTettigoniidae uhttps://biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/issue/view/Zootaxa.4526.4https://biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.4526.4.701360nas a2200217 4500008004100000022001400041245012400055210006900179260001600248300000800264490000900272520066500281653001900946653001700965653001000982653001600992653001801008100003001026700002401056856006201080 2018 eng d a1175-532600aReview of genus Conocephalus Thunberg, 1815 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Conocephalinae) with one new species from India0 aReview of genus Conocephalus Thunberg 1815 Orthoptera Tettigonii cOct-08-2019 a3810 v44613 a

The present paper includes description of one new species Conocephalus (Anisoptera) rentzi sp. nov. and some known species of genus Conocephalus Thunberg, 1815 from India. Brief diagnosis of genus and subgenus with a key to species of subgenus Anisoptera and morphometric ranges of all the species are provided. The distributional map and illustrations of all the described and reported species with SEM photography of stridulatory files of C. (Anisoptera) maculatus & C. (Anisoptera) rentzi sp. nov. have also been included. All type specimens have been deposited for posterity in the Zoology Department, Aligarh Muslim University, India (ZDAMU).

10aConocephalinae10aConocephalus10aIndia10anew species10aTettigoniidae1 aFarooqi, Mohd, Kaleemulla1 aUsmani, Mohd, Kamil uhttps://biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.4464.3.402236nas a2200253 4500008004100000245017200041210006900213260001600282300001400298490000700312520141300319653002101732653001001753653003201763653001801795653001301813100002101826700002001847700001601867700001501883700002201898700001901920856004301939 2018 eng d00aDescription and classification of Indian Ocean humpback dolphin ( Sousa plumbea ) whistles recorded off the Sindhudurg coast of Maharashtra, India0 aDescription and classification of Indian Ocean humpback dolphin  cJan-07-2018 a755 - 7760 v343 a

The Indian Ocean humpback dolphin (Sousa plumbea), a common cetacean species in India, has a diverse vocal repertoire, which to date has not been described in detail. This study focused on analyzing their whistle vocalizations. Humpback dolphins were recorded off the Sindhudurg coast of Maharashtra, India, and 2,260 whistles were analyzed for their acoustic characteristics. Whistles spanned a wide frequency range between 2.3 kHz and 33.0 kHz, with durations ranging from 0.01 s to 1.60 s. Whistles were categorized into seven contour classes based on their qualitative prop- erties. A classification and regression tree (CART) analysis was used to quantify vari- ability between the seven contour classes using the measured acoustic features. Based on the CART analysis, frequency gradient, minimum slope, maximum slope, begin- ning and ending slope accounted for most variability between whistle types. CART resulted in an overall classification accuracy of 89.5%. This study provides a detailed description of acoustic features and qualitative properties of humpback dolphin whis- tles from the northwestern coast of India. Further comparisons of acoustic data from Sousa populations along the Indian coast are necessary to determine possible geo- graphic variations in whistle characteristics and whether the variations are driven by environmental or genetic factors or a combination of both.

10ahumpback dolphin10aIndia10apassive acoustic monitoring10aSousa plumbea10awhistles1 aBopardikar, Isha1 aSutaria, Dipani1 aSule, Mihir1 aJog, Ketki1 aPatankar, Vardhan1 aKlinck, Holger uhttp://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/mms.v34.301600nas a2200193 4500008004100000245012200041210006900163300001200232490000600244520097200250653001001222653003101232653001501263653001501278653001801293100003001311700002401341856004101365 2017 eng d00aFirst record of subfamily Mecopodinae (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) from Bihar along with description of Indian species0 aFirst record of subfamily Mecopodinae Orthoptera Tettigoniidae f a803-8070 v53 aThe present study was based on the specimens of Mecopodinae during the course of a survey from (01/03/2015 to 30/03/2015) from various agricultural areas of different regions of Bihar. Four male specimens were collected from different localities and identified as a species Mecopoda elongata elongata (Linnaeus, 1758) (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae), was newly recorded from Bihar, India. The description was based on both conventional morphological and genitalic characters. The identifying features of the species were body very large, brown in color, tibial tympana opened on both the sides, stridulatory file having 98 teeth arranged in lamelliform manner under the side of left tegmen, male subgenital plate developed conically from region of bifurcation with short styli and hind femur & tibiae very long and large. A morphological description, as well as detailed illustrations of this species is presented. Distribution and morphometrically data is also provided.10aIndia10aMecopoda elongata elongata10anew record10aOrthoptera10aTettigoniidae1 aFarooqi, Mohd, Kaleemulla1 aUsmani, Mohd, Kamil uhttps://bio.acousti.ca/ja/node/5146902910nas a2200265 4500008004100000022001400041245019000055210006900245260001600314300000800330490000900338520196500347653001502312653001702327653001002344653002502354653002402379653002902403653001602432653002202448653001802470100001702488700001602505856012302521 2017 eng d a1175-532600aDescription of four new species of Burrowing Frogs in the Fejervarya rufescens complex (Dicroglossidae) with notes on morphological affinities of Fejervarya species in the Western Ghats0 aDescription of four new species of Burrowing Frogs in the Fejerv cAug-06-2018 a4510 v42773 a

The Rufescent Burrowing Frog, Fejervarya rufescens, is thought to have a wide distribution across the Western Ghats in Peninsular India. This locally abundant but secretive species has a short breeding period, making it a challenging subject for field studies. We sampled 16 populations of frogs morphologically similar to F. rufescens in order to understand the variation among populations found across the Western Ghats. Our study shows significant morphological and genetic differences among the sampled populations, suggesting that F. ‘rufescens’ is a complex of several undescribed species. Using evidence from morphology and genetics, we confirm the presence of five distinct species in this group and formally describe four as new. The new species were delineated using a phylogeny based on three mitochondrial genes (16S, COI and Cytb) and a haplotype network of a nuclear gene (Rag1). Hereafter, the distribution of F. rufescens is restricted to the state of Karnataka and adjoining regions of northern Kerala. Three new species (Fejervarya kadar sp. nov., Fejervarya manoharani sp. nov. and Fejervarya neilcoxi sp. nov.) are from regions south of Palghat gap in the state of Kerala, and one (Fejervarya cepfi sp. nov.) from the northern Western Ghats state of Maharashtra. These findings indicate that Fejervarya frogs of the Western Ghats are more diverse than currently known. Our results will also have implications on the conservation status of F. rufescens, which was previously categorized as Least Concern based on its presumed wide geographical distribution. Furthermore, in order to facilitate a better taxonomic understanding of this region’s fejervaryan frogs, we divide all the known Fejarvarya species of the Western Ghats into four major groups—Fejervarya nilagirica group, Fejervarya rufescens group, Fejervarya sahyadris group and Fejervarya syhadrensis group, based on their morphological affinities.

10aamphibians10abioacoustics10aIndia10aintegrative taxonomy10amolecular phylogeny10amulti-gene DNA barcoding10anew species10aspecies diversity10aWestern Ghats1 aGarg, Sonali1 aBiju, S. D. uhttps://www.biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/issue/view/zootaxa.4277.4https://www.biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.4277.4.1