Researchers from the Zoological Survey of India have discovered a new species of Diplura in the Eastern Himalayas

Researchers from the Zoological Survey of India have discovered a new species of Diplura in the Eastern Himalayas

¨     Researchers from the Zoological Survey of India have discovered a new species of Diplura in the Eastern Himalayas.

¨     This species has been named Lepidocampa sikkimensis. It is a wingless, soil-dwelling micro-arthropod.

¨     This is the first Diplura species formally described by an Indian research team.

¨     These specimens were collected near Ravangla in Sikkim. More specimens were later found in Kurseong.

¨     These results indicate a widespread distribution in the Eastern Himalayan region.

¨     This study was published in the international taxonomic journal Zootaxa on January 7, 2026.

¨     Seventeen Diplura species had previously been recorded from India. However, these species were only described by foreign researchers.

¨     The research team was led by Surjit Kar. The new species exhibits unique body scale patterns.

¨     It also has a distinctive bristle arrangement. Its appendage structure further distinguishes it from related species.

¨     Diplurans are primitive, blind hexapods. They play an important role in nutrient cycling. They also help maintain soil structure.

¨     The team rediscovered Lepidocampa juradii bengalensis.

¨     This subspecies had not been recorded for nearly 50 years.

¨     This study generated the first DNA barcode data for an Indian Lepidocampa species.