Researchers find rare snake-like venom glands in new amphibian species Caecilian

Scientists have discovered a new species of venomous amphibians called ringed Caecilian or siphonops annulatus. As per the research published in journal iScience on July 3, a group of researchers from Brazil and the United States has stated that these creatures reside in self-made burrows and produce two different types of secretion -- mucus in their head and a snake-like poison in their tail end. 

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Tropical climate amphibian

Caecilians are blind and depend upon facial tentacles and slime to navigate. These creatures are found in areas of tropical climate Africa, Asia and America, researchers revealed. They also confirmed that they were poisonous; however, the amphibians "cannot inject their venoms and instead rely on an attacker pressing on their pointy bits.”

Professor Edmund Brodie, Utah state university professor and co-author of the study asserted that amphibians (like frogs) are basically harmless. However, he confirmed there were a number of amphibians that stored “nasty" poisonous secretions in their skin to deter predators. Moreover, Senior author Dr. Carlos Jared added that since "caecilians are one of the least-studied vertebrates, their biology is a black box full of surprises”.

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In related news, a  group of researchers has named a newly discovered species of venomous green pit viper as Trimeresurus salazar after the Harry Potter character Salazar Slytherin. The gorgeous green snake has been discovered by a group of researchers from the Bombay Natural History Society and National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru and their paper announced the addition of Salazar's pit viper to the Trimeresurus Lacepede genus.   

The snake was found during a herpetological expedition in the north-east state of Arunachal Pradesh that is renowned for its Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. Salazar's pit viper was located in the Pakke Tiger Reserve and was marked for its green colour, orange stripe on head, and dorsal scales that resembled two other snakes - Trimeresurus septentrionalis and Trimeresurus albolabris. However, the genomic DNA test confirmed Salazar's pit viper as a new species. 

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