By Chandrani Sinha – Nestled in Manipur’s green mountains, Zeilad Wildlife Sanctuary has emerged as a hotspot for wildlife. Recently, a variety of different grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids have been observed there. A study published recently in the Journal of Applied Zoology found 124 species, eight of which were new to Northeast India, and four were completely brand new to science.
The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), along with local conservationists, is using this study to push for protecting this fragile area.
Wildlife researchers, including D. Suresh Chand, Rajdip Chakraborty, and Swapna Kumar Das, carried out the study in 2019 around Zeilad Lake, Zeilad Forest Camp, and other parts of the sanctuary. Hridesh Kumar, a forest officer, helped out in the field.
The research provides a good look at Zeilad’s insect life, with 124 species from 25 groups and eight families.
Short-horned grasshoppers (Acrididae family) made up 28% of the species, while katydids (Tettigoniidae) were 20%. They also found true crickets (Gryllidae), pyrgomorphids, mole crickets, and chorotypids, which makes the sanctuary even more diverse. This adds to what we already know about Manipur’s special wildlife.
The state has rare animals like clouded leopards, Hoolock gibbons, and Mrs. Hume’s pheasants, plus lots of orchids and other plants.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) notes that Northeast India has over 7,000 plant species and more than 3,500 animal species, making it one of the most diverse places on the Earth.
Zeilad Wildlife Sanctuary, about 372 meters above sea level, has forests that are great for insects and other animals. The study showed that different Orthoptera families like certain places.
Orthoptera is one of the largest orders of grassland insects. They are distributed over all the biographic zones of the world and their distribution depends on the vegetation like grasslands, forests and agricultural fields
Acrididae, Chorotypidae, and Pyrgomorphidae families were mostly near Zeilad Lake and the Zeilad Forest Camp, but others were all over.
Dr. Dhriti Banerjee, who runs the Zoological Survey of India, says these are important things to learn. She said that Zeilad Wildlife Sanctuary is full of rare species we don’t know about yet, also that we need to keep studying and protecting these delicate places.
Other studies have found 365 species of Orthoptera in Manipur, which shows how diverse it is. These insects are important because they are food for birds, amphibians, and reptiles, plus they help the soil and plants.
A 2023 report noted that Northeast India lost 15% of its forest in ten years. Losing habitat, cutting down trees, climate change, and people moving in all put pressure on these fragile places. That’s why protected areas like Zeilad are so important. Wildlife experts say better protection policies, more money for research, and involving local people is the need of the hour.
Hridesh Kumar, the forest officer in charge, said that local communities can help protect the forests because they have traditional knowledge and ways of doing things that can help. One idea is to keep an eye on the wildlife in the long-term.
Researchers could see how the insect populations are changing, find new dangers, and create plans to protect Zeilad. Also, better ecotourism could give local communities money and encourage them to protect the environment.
Finding rare grasshoppers in Zeilad shows why protecting natural places matters as global wildlife continues to decline.
Researcher Rajdip Chakraborty said Zeilad could help study Orthoptera due to its rare, ecologically important insects.
Chandrani Sinha is an award-winning independent multimedia journalist based in Guwahati, Assam, India. She reports on climate change, health, and environmental issues.