AmphibiaWeb - Chikila gaiduwani
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Chikila gaiduwani Kamei, Gower, Wilkinson & Biju, 2013
Gaiduwan's chikila
family: Chikilidae
genus: Chikila
Species Description: Kamei RG, Gower DJ, Wilkinson M, Biju SD 2013 Systematics of the caecilian family Chikilidae (Amphibia: Gymnophiona) with the description of three new species of Chikila from northeast India. Zootaxa 3666: 401-435.
Conservation Status (definitions)
IUCN Red List Status Account
CITES No CITES Listing
National Status None
Regional Status None
Access Conservation Needs Assessment Report .

   

 

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Description

Chikila gaiduwani is a relatively large caecilian from northeastern India, which is a global hotspot for amphibian diversity. The body is flattened, though less flat and more narrow toward the posterior half. Its length ranges from 164 - 253 mm, which is about 36 times the body width. The sides of the head are straight in dorsal view, gradually converging to the level of the tentacular apertures, then converging more rapidly between the tentacular apertures and the snout tip. In lateral view, the top of the head is straight while the upper lip is concave, its apex being closer to the eye level than to the tentacular aperture. At the mouth corners, the upper and lower jaws are about the same height. The lips are noticeably more blunt than the snout tip. The eyes are not visible and the tentacular apertures are barely elevated, visible both dorsally and ventrally. Narial plugs are present and flap-like. The nuchal region is larger than the adjacent body, and much larger than the back of the head. Nuchal grooves 1 and 2 encircle the body almost completely. Collar 2 has two transverse grooves, one going across the width of the dorsum, and the second being short, faint, and located between the first transverse groove and nuchal groove 2. There are 89 - 97 annular grooves. About seven of the first annular grooves are complete middorsally, becoming incomplete or faint until the posterior third of the body, where they are also complete. Most annular grooves are incomplete along the ventral midline, but some are complete toward the posterior. In lateral view, about 11 of the first primary annuli are somewhat oblique. The posterior edges of the primary annuli are completely flat. The vent region interrupts the last three or four annular grooves, and the vent is in a circular, relatively discrete disc with 11 denticulations. There is one row of overlapping scales on the dorsum posteriorly at about the 91st annulus. The scales are longer than they are wide, about 1 mm by 0.6 mm (Kamei et al. 2013).

Chikila gaiduwani differs from others in the Chikila genus by its sudden bicolor transition about halfway down the flank, compared to the unicolored C. alcocki and the gradually-transitioning bicoloration in C. darlong and C. fulleri. The anterior head shape of C. gaiduwani is broadly rounded in dorsal view, while C. alcocki has a moderately broad head, C. darlong is pointed, and C. fulleri is moderately pointed (Kamei et al. 2013).

In life, C. gaiduwani is strongly bicolored with its dorsum being dark pinkish lavender with a pale brown color in the last tenth of the body and the venter being more pale and somewhat translucent. The tentacular apertures are located in whitish spots that extend via narrow stripes to the expected eye position. The nares, lips, and snout tip are also whitish, and the lower jaw has a whitish V-shaped marking that is separate from the whitish lip margins. The coloration is similar in preservative, except the dorsal lavender color turns more gray and the venter turns more tan (Kamei et al. 2013).

The top of the head may be convex in lateral view. There may be a small, aglandular patch of skin present that is anterior to and adjacent to the disc in the vent area (Kamei et al. 2013).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: India

 

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.
The type locality is Teobronggre Coffee Garden in Teobronggre, Tura, Meghalaya, India. The species is also known from the West Garo Hills and the Ri Bhoi districts in Meghalaya, and the Goalpara and Kamrup districts in Assam, India. Chikila gaiduwani is known to occupy altitudes between 86 - 538 m. Individuals were common during the monsoon season in or near agricultural fields including tea, jhum, and paddy fields (Kamei et al. 2013).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Chikila gaiduwani are commonly found during the monsoon season in or near agricultural fields including tea, jhum, and paddy fields (Kamei et al. 2013).

Breeding in Chikila species likely occurs at the start of the monsoon season around the second week of May (Kamei et al. 2013).

Trends and Threats
Chikila gaiduwani is thought to qualify for the Least Concern status in the IUCN Red List, given its abundance in protected areas and wide distribution. However, Chikila populations have also been found outside of protected areas in degraded agricultural habitats. Additionally, with breeding aligning with the monsoon season in mid-May to mid-August, eggs and hatchlings have been killed by increased agricultural activity during this time. In general, the large-scale the destruction of tropical rainforests in northeast India occurs at a large scale, even within protected areas, and may be a threat (Kamei et al. 2013).

Relation to Humans
Agriculture is well-established in northeast India, and Chikila species are common in some agricultural localities. Farmers are generally familiar with Chikila species (Kamei et al. 2013).

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss
Habitat modification from deforestation, or logging related activities
Intensified agriculture or grazing

Comments

Chikila fulleri, which was initially thought to be more widespread, but has been divided into several distinct species including C. gaiduwani, was originally described as Herpele fulleri. After its description, the species was moved from Herpele to the Gegeneophis genus, members of which were only known from the Western Ghats of India. Maximum Likelihood analysis and Bayesian Inference of cox1 and 16S mtDNA then revealed that C. fulleri was made up of multiple species, which include C. alcocki, C. darlong, and C. gaiduwani. These new species with C. fulleri form the Chikila genus and Chikilidae family. Chikila gaiduwani belongs to a clade that is sister to the clade containing C. alcocki, C. darlong, and C. fulleri (Kamei et al. 2013).

The species is named after the species authority’s first author’s father, Gaiduwan Gaipuizei Kammei, in appreciation of his support for research in northeast India (Kamei et al. 2013).

References
Kamei R.G., Gower D.J., Wilkinson M., and Biju S.D. (2013). Systematics of the caecilian family Chikilidae (Amphibia: Gymnophiona) with the description of three new species of Chikila from northeast India. Zootaxa 3666, 401-435. [link]



Originally submitted by: Madeline Ahn (2023-09-28)
Description by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)
Distribution by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)
Life history by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)
Trends and threats by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)
Relation to humans by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)
Comments by: Madeline Ahn (updated 2023-09-28)

Edited by: Ann T. Chang (2023-09-28)

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2023 Chikila gaiduwani: Gaiduwan's chikila <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/8020> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Mar 29, 2024.



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Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 29 Mar 2024.

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