New snail Theobaldius konkanensis named after Maharashtra’s Konkan region  

Researchers discover new land snail species, Theobaldius konkanensis, endemic to northern Western Ghats, highlighting need for conservation.

A team of researchers from India and U.K. have discovered a species of land snail from the Konkan region of Maharashtra and named it, ‘Theobaldius konkanensis’.  

In a paper titled, ‘A new species of cyclophorid land snail (Caenogastropoda: Cyclophoridae) from the coastal regions of Maharashtra, India’ published on March 11, 2025, in the international scientific journal Molluscan Research, the researchers have said that this snail is endemic to the northern Western Ghats, an unstudied biodiversity hotspot.  

The lead authors of the paper are Amrut Bhosale from the Department of Zoology, Dahiwadi College, Dahiwadi in Satara district of Maharashtra; Tejas Thackeray and Akshay Khandekar from Thackeray Wildlife Foundation, Mumbai; Omkar Yadav from the Department of Zoology, Amdar Shashikant Shinde Mahavidyalay, Medha in Satara; Tom S. White from The Natural History Museum, London, U.K. and Dinarzarde C. Raheem from the Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka and Scientific Associate at The Natural History Museum, London U.K.    

Researchers said land snails were excellent bioindicators and were susceptible to climatic fluctuations. Nowadays, anthropogenic activities were increased in this area, leading to the extinction of the land snail species with patchy distribution. Exploring the species would add to the knowledge of the land snail species of the Konkan as well as the Western Ghats. 

On selecting the name of the species, Mr. Omkar Yadav said, “Considering the distribution of the new species in the Konkan region, we gave the name Theobaldius konkanensis to the new species. Much of the area of the Konkan and the northern Western Ghats remains unexplored, and our survey is ongoing, so there are possibilities that the species may record further north or south of the current distribution. We will continue the survey in the region.”  

Mr. Tejas Thackeray said that many species of snails found in the forests of Konkan were endemic. “Theobaldius konkanensis is a species that exists only in specific regions of Konkan. This makes it an invaluable part of Konkan’s natural heritage. Therefore, taking the right steps for its conservation is of critical significance.” 

Talking about the research, Mr. Amrut Bhosale said that the survey was conducted in 2021 at a few locations in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri and Raigad districts. These locations were in the lower elevational forests of the northern Western Ghats and a forest patch in the coastal Maharashtra at an altitude of 80 to 240 meters above sea level. The samples of snails were found at Dev Gireshwar Temple in Ansure, Ratnagiri; Uttamrao Patil Biodiversity Garden in Chikhali, Guhagar Chiplun Road in Ratnagiri; Kesharnath Vishnu Temple in Shedwai, Ratnagiri; and Phansad Sanctury in Raigad.