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Source: The post is based on the article “Longlost moth species caught on camera in T.N. forest” published in The Hindu on 10th March 2023
What is the News?
Researchers from Tamil Nadu have spotted a rare moth species for the first time in India named “Mimeusemia ceylonica” in the buffer zone of the Kalakkad–Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR).
This moth species was last sighted 127 years ago — at Trincomalee in Sri Lanka in 1893.
What is Mimeusemia ceylonica?
Mimeusemia ceylonica is a moth species belonging to the subfamily Agaristinae and family Noctuidae.
It was first illustrated and described by Hampson in 1893 from Sri Lanka from the collections of moths in the British museum.
The species has been rediscovered after 127 years during a moth survey conducted in the year 2020 at the Agasthyamalai Community-based Conservation Centre (ACCC) situated in the buffer zone of Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR).
This is the first record of the species from Tamil Nadu, India.
What is Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve?
Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve is located in the South Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu.
It forms part of the interstate Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve.
It includes three sanctuaries, viz. Kalakad, Mundanthurai and part of Kanyakumari Sanctuary, with portions of Tirunelveli forest division of the State.
Significance: The Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, along with the Periyar Tiger Reserve of Kerala, constitute the southernmost tiger ranges of the Western Ghats in South India. Thus, they are high-priority areas for global biodiversity conservation efforts.
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