Environment & Biodiversity Current Affairs MCQs

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Recently, scientists discovered a new frog species named Amolops shillong, or the Shillong Cascade Frog, right inside the city limits of Shillong, Meghalaya. This frog lives in fast-flowing streams hidden within Shillong’s urban forest areas. It belongs to a group of stream frogs that look very similar and are hard to identify. Genetic studies confirmed that Amolops shillong is part of the Amolops indoburmanensis complex and is closely related to Amolops siju, which was found in Siju Cave by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in 2023.

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A rare Arctic seabird, the Sabine’s Gull, was recently spotted at Nalsarovar Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat — its first sighting in India since 2013 in Kerala. Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary is located in Gujarat. It was declared a sanctuary in 1969 and became a Ramsar Site in 2012 under the Ramsar Convention. It hosts 48 algae and 72 flowering plant species, supporting rich birdlife and biodiversity.

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Experts from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, recently radio-collared three endangered fishing cats in Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS). Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS) is located in Andhra Pradesh. This is the first time in India that fishing cats (Prionailurus viverrinus) have been collared to study their home range, breeding, prey, and behaviour. Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary lies in the Godavari estuary where the Coringa river meets the Bay of Bengal in Kakinada district.

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The Indira Gandhi Zoological Park (IGZP) recently announced the successful birth of a mouse deer, highlighting its conservation and breeding success. The mouse deer, also called the Indian Chevrotain, is the smallest deer species and is known for its shy and elusive behavior. It is endemic to the Indian Subcontinent, mainly found in peninsular India, with some old records from Nepal, and a separate species in Sri Lanka. In India, it is seen in Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats up to Odisha, and central Indian forests.

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Two new earthworm species, Kanchuria tripuraensis and Kanchuria priyasankari, were recently discovered in Tripura. Kanchuria tripuraensis was found in rubber and pineapple plantations and is named after the state, showing biodiversity in cultivated areas. Kanchuria priyasankari is named in honour of Priyasankar Chaudhuri for his lifelong work in earthworm taxonomy. These discoveries raise the genus Kanchuria’s species count to 10 and Tripura’s earthworm species total to 38.

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Recently, a wildlife scientist highlighted the use of CaTRAT (Camera Trap data Repository and Analysis Tool) to identify Himalayan snow leopards. CaTRAT is a software that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and neural network models to automatically sort camera trap images of animal species. It helps researchers efficiently process large volumes of photos and identify snow leopards in high-altitude regions.

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Recently, a report highlighted that the leopard population in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve (DTR) has increased by 198.91% since 2022. Dudhwa Tiger Reserve is located on the Indo-Nepal border in Lakhimpur-Kheri district, Uttar Pradesh. It comprises Dudhwa National Park and two wildlife sanctuaries—Kishanpur and Katerniaghat—along with forest areas of North Kheri, South Kheri, and Shahjahanpur in its buffer zone. The reserve lies in the Tarai-Bhabar habitat of the Upper Gangetic Plains Biogeographic Province.

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Recently, lotus flowers have bloomed again in Wular Lake in Kashmir after nearly three decades, bringing hope to local communities. This revival follows ecological restoration efforts, including desilting, aimed at boosting the local economy through lotus stem harvesting. Wular Lake is the largest freshwater lake in India and the second largest in Asia. It is located in the Bandipore district of Jammu and Kashmir and is fed by the Jhelum River.

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The Pale-capped Pigeon was recently spotted in Dehing Patkai National Park, Assam, marking a rare and important sighting for birdwatchers and conservationists. It is also called the Purple Wood Pigeon due to its dark purplish-maroon colour. It is found locally across parts of northern and northeastern India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The bird lives mainly in primary or secondary evergreen forests, and also in bamboo groves and farmlands near forests.

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Lantana camara, an invasive alien species, now infests about 3,25,282 hectares of forest land in Himachal Pradesh, threatening native biodiversity. It was introduced in India in the early 18th century as an ornamental plant and is native to Central and South America. Lantana camara releases allelochemicals, suppressing native plants and reducing biodiversity by forming dense bushy layers. It is spreading from lower to higher altitudes, worsening its ecological impact. Its biomass can be reused for furniture, fuelwood, compost, and vermicompost, promoting organic farming and reducing reliance on inorganic manure.