A new-to-science cryptic amphibian has given violence-hit Manipur something to cheer about amid bloodshed and gloom.
A team of scientists trekked to the Khongtheng mountain range in 2022 to uncover the mysteries of the Tylototriton verrucosus, commonly called crocodile newt, whose members had long confused even the most experienced of herpetologists.
They ended up recording a new species of salamander — the Tylototriton zaimeng — in the Zaimeng Lake within the Koubru Forest Division in Kangpokpi district, one of the worst-hit by the ethnic violence that has scarred Manipur since May 3.
