New damselfly species Dysphaea assamensis discovered in Karbi Anglong
Researchers have formally described the new species, which resolves a taxonomic misidentification that has existed since 1927.
Researchers have formally described a new damselfly species, Dysphaea assamensis, discovered in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam, according to The Assam Tribune.
The formal characterisation was published on October 13, 2026, in the journal Zootaxa. The species was identified near a partially shaded lowland forest stream in the Nambor and Garampani wildlife sanctuaries.
Specimens were collected during field surveys in May and June 2026. Five male individuals were netted for morphological examination, while the female was characterised through high-resolution field photographs provided by citizen scientists.
The discovery resolves a taxonomic issue that has lasted nearly a century. Since 1927, damselfly populations in Northeast India and Bangladesh were mistakenly classified as Dysphaea walli, a species from Myanmar.
The research team included Rima Amsih from Dibrugarh University, Arajush Payra and Dr Vishwanath Karad from MIT World Peace University, KA Subramanian from the Zoological Survey of India, and Samrat Sengupta of Debraj Roy College (Autonomous), Assam.
The team stated that the description enriches India’s odonatological diversity and rectifies a longstanding misidentification, highlighting biodiversity hotspots in Northeast India.