A new species of green pit viper has been found in Arunachal Pradesh and it is an interesting discovery because it has links to Harry Potter! It is categorically named Salazar Slytherin, the co-founder of JK Rowlings’ fictional Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It is a bright green snake found from the forests of Pakke Tiger Reserve in Arunachal. The snake was discovered last year between the months of June and August 2019. The finding was published months later, in the April issue of international science journal Zoosystematics and Evolution. Rare Two-Headed Russell's Viper Snake Found in Kalyan Near Mumbai; What Causes Multiple Heads to Grow? Everything About Polycephaly (Watch Video).

The research paper gives details onto the name of this snake and its relation to Harry Potter. The 'etymology' section reads, "The specific epithet is a noun in apposition for JK Rowling’s fictional Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry’s co-founder, Salazar Slytherin. He was a Parselmouth that links him to serpents. Suggested common name: Salazar’s pit viper." The discovery was made by Zeeshan A. Ayaz Mirza of Bengaluru’s National Centre for Biological Sciences, Harshal S. Bhosale of Bombay Natural History Society and four others. The team is a fan of the series and thus the name seems significant. A New Bandy-bandy Species of Venomous Snake Accidentally Discovered in Australia.

Going by the difference in appearance compared to its other counterparts, this pit viper has orange to reddish stripe near its lips. It has more teeth compared to the other venomous snakes. This new pit viper happens to be the fifth variety of reptile to have been discovered in Arunachal Pradesh in a little more than a year. According to the research experts, the Salazar pit viper belongs to a genus of "charismatic venomous serpents with morphologically as well as ecologically diverse species." New Snake Species Found, Named After Uddhav Thackeray's Younger Son 'Tejas'.

Here's Author's Tweet on Their Discovery:

About 15 pit viper snakes are found in India, seven of which have been found in northeast before. Although, researchers believe there could be more such snakes out there but are difficult to identify. This Salazar Slytherin was found in a project in 2019 called "Accessing the herpetological biodiversity of Arunachal Pradesh." Harshal Bhosale of BNHS told Indian Express report, "We should have a basic structure to understand what species are there [in Arunachal Pradesh] so that can aid conservation. This was one of the focuses of the project."

While the new discovery is indeed exciting for herpetology experts, it also raises concern on the loss of habitat in the region. It is where a highway between Sejosa and Bhalokpong is threatened to cut through Pakke Tiger Reserve, where a lot of reptiles thrive.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 19, 2020 10:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).