ITANAGAR, Sept 12 � Scientists at GB Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED) here have discovered two new species of fish in rivers of Arunachal Pradesh.
�The discovery of two new species of catfish � Erethistoides Senkhiensis and Glyptothorax Dikrongensis was made by the institute�s staffers Lakpa Tamang and Shivaji Chaudhry at Senkhi stream and Dikrong river in Papum Pare district, Institute�s North East unit in-charge, Dr Prasanna K Samal told reporters here today.
The new species which were named after their Arunachalee sources are ample proof the rich flora and fauna of Arunachal Pradesh, Samal said.
Besides publishing about the discovery of Balitora brucei, Glyptothorax telchitta and Pseudolaguvia shawi, 88 species of freshwater fishes have been assessed and evaluated by the institute for the Red Data Book for International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Samal informed.
According to Dr Samal, the Erethistoides senkhiensis species was captured from Senkhi stream during samplings carried out between March and June 2006. After consultation of standard literature and compilation of morphometric data, the species was placed in catfish genera Erethistoides.
This genus had 6 species and all the taxonomic and morphometric descriptions were cross checked and it was found that it does not have overhanging snout. � PTI
