Asia’s 1st amphibian that doesn’t lay eggs

Instead, this unique species gives birth like mammals


Scientists of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) have discovered Asia’s first amphibian species that gives birth to its young ones rather than laying eggs.

Named Gegeneophis seshachari, it was recently discovered at Baraki village near Kolhapur.

Amphibians are usually oviparous — egg-laying — but a few species are also known to be viviparous — where embryo develops inside the body of the mother like in mammals. Gegeneophis seshachari is one of the most poorly known caecilian, a legless amphibian species.

This is for the third time in recent past that new species have been found in Maharashtra. Earlier, BNHS scientists had discovered an all new species of lizard near Junnar in Pune district and also rediscovered Indian egg eater snake, considered to be extinct, near Wardha in Vidarbha.

“Reproduction and its evolution is one of the most interesting aspects of the biology of amphibians like frogs, toads, salamanders and caecilians. Amphibians not only include species that have the classic biphasic lifestyle — eggs laid in water metamorphosis into terrestrial adults — but also many other types, including terrestrial eggs that hatch as miniature adults and ‘live birth’ — viviparity,” said Varad Giri, Scientist ‘B’, BNHS, one of the key figures in the latest discovery.

“This is a path breaking development that a caecilian has managed to evolve to become viviparous unlike its cousins. This kind of behaviour is reported from Western Ghats only,” Giri said. The discovery is part of the research project on conservation of herpetofauna — amphibians and reptiles living in a particular geographical area — in the northern Western Ghats, which BNHS started in 2006. In June 2006, scientists stumbled upon a species which resembled caecilian but its behaviour was contradictory to the established one when it came to breeding.

“We were highly excited to find that this amphibian did not lay eggs. Instead, it directly gave birth to babies,” said Giri. Before coming to any conclusion, the information about the species was passed on to noted scientist Dr David Gower of Natural History Museum, London, and Dr Mahesh Dharane and Dr Yogesh Shouche of the National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS) in Pune.

After meticulous research over two years, scientists realised what they had discovered. “It was a great moment. Moreover, we have evidence of the presence of this species in many areas like Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg and Kolhapur districts,” Giri said.

The first specimen found near Baraki village in Kolhapur district in June 2006 turned out to be a pregnant female with four well developed foetuses. After research and confirmation, it is now named gegeneophis seshachari, the viviparous. “This is the first life-bearing amphibian from India and Asia as well,” Giri said.

Research and DNA analysis confirmed that it is closely related to another Indian species, gegeneophis ramaswamii, found in the Western Ghats of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.